Sonic Chaos Z
by Whiskers the Wonder Cat
Summary: A retelling of the Dragon Ball Z story set in the Sonic universe. Clichéd idea (I know), but there's a twist! ... Dragon Ball Z Kai is the basis this time! It may be an unoriginal idea but nevertheless it's as awesome as it sounds. Well don't just stand there! Give it a try! The story does take some liberties as it goes along so be prepared for some surprises down the line.
1. Prologue to battle! The return of Sonic!

**Uh yeah...so this is like my first attempt at this sorta thing. Don't let that stop you from being as critical as you want. I'm guessing you've already read the title right? Well of course you have but in the case you haven't this story is basically Sonic meets DBZ. Quite an unoriginal idea you've stumbled upon but give it a try and you might enjoy.** **(Damn I'm not good with these opening author note thingies) Whatever...  
**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own DBZ or Sonic.**

 **(In case ya didn't figure that out...zzzz)**

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 _In a far off land, beyond the mountains lies a peaceful valley of flowers and streams. Very few knew of this tranquil place, tucked safely away in the desolate parts of the region. One fateful day, a man was walking through this very place on the way back home. And as fate would have it, today_ _he would come across something truly remarkable in the woods._

 _"Oh dear!" he exclaimed upon finding the lone infant hedgehog. "I can't very well leave you out here all on your own?"_

 _And thanks to the kindness of a stranger, the hedgehog would make this land his home._

 _"If I'm going to be looking after you I suppose I'll need to give you a name. Let's see here. I think I'll name you…Sonic!"_

 _This…is where the story of Sonic the hedgehog begins!_

 _The years passed, and the baby Sonic grew to be a strong, healthy hedgehog. But his life would be forever changed when he met a batgirl named Rouge, and joined her on her quest to find the seven Chaos emeralds, mystical jewels that when gathered together, would call forth the Dragon Chaos to grant a single wish._

 _Sonic met many new friends in his travels, and honed his skills as a student of the great Professor Pickle. Skills that were continually put to the test, as he was forced to defend himself and his friends, against a host of dangerous opponents._

 _Sonic's toughest test came when he faced the powerful villain, Warlord Pachacamac. But the help of his friends allowed Sonic to tap into vast reserves of still-hidden strength._

 _In the battle that followed, the true extent of Sonic's otherworldly powers was revealed and with a mighty spin-dash, Warlord Pachacamac's quest for world domination came crashing to a halt._

 _However, with his dying breath, Pachacamac had time to hatch one more scheme. And three years later, Knuckles the echidna, appeared before a grown-up Sonic looking to avenge his father and resume his evil plans._

 _Another epic battle ensued. And though the two were almost equally matched, in the end, the new Echidna still could not withstand Sonic's might._

 _Five years have passed since that fateful day._

 _Sonic has settled down with his childhood sweetheart Amy Rose and the two have enjoyed a quiet life together, while the world remained at peace...until now._

...

It was a beautiful sunny day in the outskirts of Mazuri. Amongst the plains a farmer could be seen, busy loading hay on to his truck.

"Whooo, boy…" he said whilst fanning himself with his straw hat. "I guess that should just about do it..."

The farmer grinned, looking most satisfied at the pile of hay. Just then, something in the corner of his eye caught his attention. The farmer looked up to see a ball of fire, piercing through the skies above him… A few moments later, there was a huge explosion in the distance that spewed clouds of smoke. Even though he was at a safe distance, the farmer was nevertheless shaken up.

"What in...the heck...was that!? A-A meteor?" he mumbled to himself.

He quickly regained his composure, jumped into his truck and sped off towards the crash site. True, he was quite nervous but his curiosity had gotten the best of him. Just what had happened? He had to know what he was dealing with before he took any action.

Within minutes he arrived to the crash site and skidded to a halt at the source of the smoke: an enormous crater. As the air cleared up, he slowly edged towards it tightly clutching his shotgun. Upon closer inspection, the center of the crater housed a large metallic sphere.

"That's no meteor..." marveled the farmer, more curious than ever now. "But what is it?"

As if to answer his question, the spacecraft opened its hatch and its pilot climbed out. It was a Red Shelled Armadillo, dressed in some otherworldly battle armor. Upon his forehead, some sort of mechanical device was strapped like a headband. He levitated himself out of the crater and stepped in front of the farmer who was now most fearful.

"Who- Who...are you"?! What do you want!?" stuttered the farmer, trying his hardest to be brave.

Subconsciously the farmer also cocked his gun but the stranger seemed unconcerned. Tapping the Scouter gadget on his forehead, a green visor appeared before the Armadillo's eyes. His scouter bleeped a few times before depicting something an alien language.

"You have a power level of only **5**. Pitiful," mused the Armadillo.

At this point the farmer was in hysterics and was sweating profusely.

"Stay back! Don't come any closer!" he said whilst taking aim. "I... I'll shoot! I mean it!"

The stranger found his threat amusing and purposely walked closer. The farmer in desperation pulled the trigger and fired a single bullet. With lightning fast speed the unfazed stranger caught it inches from his face; not that it would have hurt him to begin with. He even held it out between his fingers in plain sight of the farmer.

Wild with disbelief before the farmer could fully comprehend what happened, the Armadillo flicked the bullet right back at him. It struck him with enough force to vault him through the air. He crash landed on his truck, sore and unconscious.

"Hmph... It's a race of utter weaklings," said the stranger most unimpressed.

The device on his forehead began to beep and observed its findings. It was signaling him towards the mountains.

"THERE'S someone with a decent power level. Range: **48-80**."

With this new information revealed to him, the stranger sped off into the air towards his destination.

"Where are you Terios!?" he shouted from above.

In the midst of Sand Hill: a large desert not too far from the Mystic Ruins, Knuckles the Echidna had just completed another one of his training sessions. After all, if he was ever going to defeat Sonic, he had to sharpen both his body and mind to their full potential. And it seemed his training had paid off because from far off in the distance he could sense and incredible surge of power coming his way. Instinctively he turned to around to face the threat.

"Wha…What is this power I'm sensing? It can't be… Sonic!?" he muttered whilst visually scanning the area.

Before long he could see someone in the air heading straight towards him.

"Who's that!?" thought Knuckles as the Red Shelled Armadillo landed right before him.

"You're not Terios…" stated the stranger with a disappointed look.

"What do you want? Who are you?" Knuckles boldly retorted. "You have some business with me?"

"No, I mistook you for someone else..."

"Then unless you're in a hurry to die; keep moving," Knuckles stressed firmly.

"Well aren't you the feisty one…" he replied, analyzing Knuckles with his Scouter. "Ah-h…And I see why. Power level **322**...That's almost respectable. **Almost**. Heh heh heh. It's still nothing compared to me."

Knuckles was furious now; he had no tolerance for insults.

"Why you…" exclaimed Knuckles clenching his fists. "I should kill you where you stand! Do who have any idea who you're talking to!?"

"Should I?" replied the Armadillo completely relaxed.

Knuckles was by no means a coward however this time his instincts seem to be telling him to flee. The stranger's self confidence didn't help.

"What's wrong with him!?" Knuckles thought to himself. "He can't be that powerful, can he...? Guess there's only one way to find out..."

Without warning, Knuckles unleashed his Thunder Arrow attack: a devastating lightning strike on his opponent, filling the area with smoke. Knuckles grinned in satisfaction. If his enemy didn't make any sounds of pain then it was likely he was already dead. Good. One should never overestimate their own ability thought Knuckles. And as the air cleared, Knuckles realized he was no exception either because his opponent stood there completely unscathed.

"Hehehe, you call _that_ an attack? Pathetic," sneered the stranger. "Although, it is effective at kicking up dust."

Knuckles couldn't help but gawk in disbelief. That was one of his most powerful attacks! And his opponent brushed it off like it was nothing! If he could withstand something like that then Knuckles was truly out of his league.

"You finished? That all you've got?" he said, bringing Knuckles back to reality. "In that case, why don't I show you one of _my_ moves?"

The stranger lifted his palm and begun charging an energy based counter attack.

"I call this one: Keep your eyes on the birdie! Now _keep your eyes on the birdie_!" the stranger laughed sadistically.

Knuckles braced himself for the worst. His opponent was faster and stronger than him and there was little chance of escape. All of a sudden the Armadillo's device began displaying a new reading which caught his attention.

"A new signal... It looks like another strong power level..." he muttered to himself, losing all interest in Knuckles. "It's that way... Range: **129-09** and closing. It's a big one, certainly the biggest power level on this puny planet. This is it, it must be Terios!"

Turning back to his opponent one last time the stranger laughed to himself.

"It's your lucky day. This time I'm letting you go but the next time we meet you won't be so lucky."

And with that he flew off into the horizon. Knuckles dropped to his knees shaken and frustrated.

"Just who was that!? He's miles away, and I still can't stop trembling. This guy could be a problem…"

Elsewhere a bat-girl was flying her way towards a lone tropical island, with a large house in the middle of the ocean. It was Kyuuri Estate belonging to the world-renowned scholar: Professor Pickle. The bat-girl landed on it's shores and made her way towards the already open front door.

"Hello in there! Guess who!" she shouted on her way in.

"Rouge!" replied a voice as she was greeted by 3 familiar faces.

The voice belonged to her old friend Marine the Raccoon who was seated next to Professor Pickle who as expected was serving his favorite dish of cucumber sandwiches with his pet bird Flicky. Rouge was still impressed by the grandeur of the living room even though it hardly changed a bit since her last visit years ago.

"Yep! I got your invitation, so here I am!" Rouge said as she walked in.

"Excellent, we were unsure if you were able to make it today. It's been a while, yes?" asked the Professor while Flicky nodded in agreement.

"I miss this place, hasn't changed a bit!" said Rouge, thinking back to her earlier adventures.

"Well, there's no need to be so shy. You can stop by for a visit any time. I don't tend to get a lot of visitors out here in the middle of the ocean!" the Professor replied whilst helping himself to another sandwich. Rouged pulled out a box and handed it to Marine.

"Here I got you guys a little something…"

Rouge hated being sentimental but these two were her friends so she figured she could make an exception. Marine opened the box to find a large cake with her trademark symbol on it. Marine was delighted.

"Aw that's really sweet of ya, Rouge-"

"Uh yeah sure-whatever, ha ha…" said Rouge cutting her off.

She was never good at this sort of thing. Marine knew that too so she changed the topic.

"Hey, so ah, where's Espio? I thought he'd be with you…" asked Marine which turned out to be a bad decision.

"That idiot..." began Rouge getting very vexed up. "I don't even wanna think about him! I didn't even tell him we were gonna be here today; I never wanna see him again. I'm done with him for good. I mean can you believe it!? He took another girl on a date!"

"It seems nothing has changed with those two either," said Professor Pickle simply scratching his head.

"Nope I guess not," mumbled Marine adorably through a mouthful of cake.

"Hey, look-we're here! Professor Pickle's house! Hello-o!" a voice called from outside.

"Sonic!" they collectively exclaimed as they rushed outside to find the one and only Sonic the Hedgehog.

They typically exchanged greetings before the trio realized that besides Sonic was a two tailed fox child.

"Uh…so who's the kid?" inquired Rouge.

"Yeah, what gives?" added Marine. "Are you babysittin' him for somebody?"

"He's my son!" replied Sonic.

This came as a huge shock to everyone. Not the fact that Sonic's son was a fox because Amy was descended from the Great Fox-King and it _was_ possible for hybrid genes to be passed many generations down the line. No, what caught their surprise was the fact that Sonic had a child at all!

"Yep, that's right. Crazy, huh?" laughed Sonic in response to their confusion. "Come on son... Say hi."

"Hello," said Tails whilst bowing politely.

"Hello to you too, little one," replied the Professor.

"His name is Miles but we call usually him by his nickname Tails" said Sonic.

"I see! So you named him after your dear old uncle?" asked the Professor.

"Uh-huh."

"I must admit, this is some surprise. I honestly didn't think you had it in you, Sonic."

As the Professor talked, his Flicky bird approached Tails who clung close to his father quite feebly. Rouge found this quite adorable.

"He's so cute... So how old are you?" Rouge asked Tails and he began to count on his fingers.

"I'm four, miss."

"Wow, aren't you the little gentleman," Rouge turned to Sonic. "You sure he's yours?"

"Well, he gets that from Amy," replied Sonic scratching the spines on his head.

"So tell us some more about yourself Tails. What do you wanna be when you grow up?" asked Rouge.

"I'm gonna be a great scholar," Tails replied not entirely sure of what he was even saying.

"Oh! You- You don't say..." a stunned Rouge stated.

At this point Flicky flew by Tails again and seemed interested in the translucent crystal located in the notch of Tails' neck. The others soon noticed as well.

"A crystal?" Rouge examined.

"Uh-huh! Just like I used to have, remember?" informed Sonic.

"Oh yeah, that's right," said Marine.

She figured it must be a genetic trait passed down from Sonic. At last, Tails appeared to be more comfortable with Flicky's presence, even allowing her to perch on his shoulder. Speaking of Tails' crystal, Rouge was reminded of the reason about why they made Sonic remove this crystal all those years ago. If the crystalline protrusion was a genetic trait then did that mean Tails could also become…

"So, uh, Sonic... have you noticed anything, I don't know, strange about your boy?" Rouge anxiously interjected.

"Whaddaya mean?" asked Sonic confused by the vague question.

Sonic never did learn the truth about his own crystal induced escapades. Professor Pickle had reached the same conclusion as Rouge and became equally nervous.

"For example, does he start acting "different" when he sees a full moon, or anything?" the Professor inquired.

"Sees a full moon? No but we go to bed pretty early," said Sonic. "Why'd you ask?"

"Uh! Never mind! It's nothing. It's nothing!" the Professor assured, as the others breathed a collective sigh of relief.

Marine noticed Tails and Flicky observing shells brought in by the tide.

"So Sonic, is he strong like you, too?" asked Marine.

"Well uh..." Sonic trailed of.

He noticed Tails being easily frightened by the sudden appearance of a Hermit Crab from one of the shells.

"It's hard to say..." continued Sonic. "It seems like it sometimes."

Apparently the crab had challenged Tails to a Rock-Paper-Scissors game. Fortunately Tails was brave enough to comply.

"But I can't give him any combat training to find out for sure. Amy won't let me!" pouted Sonic.

"Why not? Seems like a waste if you ask me," stated Marine.

"I know... But Amy won't budge. She says the world's been at peace so long now, there's no reason to teach him how to fight. She says he's got to focus on his studies…"

As Sonic went on, Professor Pickle noticed that Tails' new friend had gotten a little…well crabby! The crab could only choose scissors with his claws making him easy to beat. So when Tails won yet again, the crab sprayed his face with bubbles and crawled away.

"Be careful Tails! That crab's a bad sportsman" the Professor chuckled.

"Daddy!" said Tails cheerfully, as he ran back.

Sonic returned Tails hat back to him and the shiny red jewel on top of the hat finally caught Rouge's eye.

"Is that what I think it is?" she asked.

"Yep! It's the Red Chaos Emerald...It was my Uncle Chuck's most prized possession," Sonic explained. "I put it on there to remember him by. I also found the Blue Emerald and the Yellow Emerald l when I was out looking for this one. I keep them back at home."

"Now that takes me back…" Rouge laughed. "We had some crazy times searching for those things, didn't we?"

Sonic was about to nod in agreement, when suddenly his ear twitched and he felt a spasm ripple through his body causing him to impulsively enter his fighting stance. The others were confused by Sonic's random behavior.

"What's that?!" shouted Sonic with alarm.

"What's wrong?" the concerned Professor asked.

"I…I don't know. Something's coming this way."

They all looked towards the ocean for any signs of a threat but the sky seemed empty, with nothing but clouds for miles.

"Uh... You sure about that?" Marine inquired.

"I dunno," pondered a skeptical Rouge.

Sonic however knew something was wrong and that he'd never felt anything as powerful as this before. His suspicions proved right.

"There!" pointed Sonic towards a silhouette in the sky. "Here it comes!"

"What the-Who-Who is that?" a confuddled Marine exclaimed.

The flying stranger approached closer and closer and everyone tried to maintain their composure and prepared , save for Professor Pickle who could sense the imminent danger.

"This is trouble. I can feel it," he thought to himself.

And within moments the Red Shelled Armadillo arrived on the sands of the island. Rouge and Marine took a defensive approach, whilst Tails clung tightly to Sonic. By the looks of things the stranger had set his sights on Sonic and was clearly examining him with interest like a lab rat.

"So, we finally meet" he began, whilst disengaging his visor. "You're all grown up. But I could tell it was you at a glance Terios."

"Teri-what?" a confused Sonic mumbled.

"My, how you look like our mother..." murmured the stranger, unaware of Sonic's confusion.

"What does that mean?" Rouge questioned.

"Wait, hold on a sec" interrupted Marine. "You know this guy?" she asked Sonic.

The stranger's expression suddenly turned grim.

"Terios, what the hell have you been doing here all these years?" the stranger addressed Sonic. "Your mission was to terminate every native life form on the planet. So, why haven't you carried it out?"

Sonic looked at his friends for support but they seemed as clueless as him. It was then that Marine decided she wasn't going to be intimidated by the crazy stranger.

"Now look you," she started whilst pointing at the Armadillo. "I don't know who you are but I think we have heard just about enough. Time to leave. Shoo, go."

Clearly the Stranger didn't seem to take her threat seriously at all. His visor came over his eyes again as if he needed glasses to see her properly.

"Or…" Marine walked towards to him, "Since you don't seem to be good at taking a hint, maybe you need me to point you in the right direction."

The Scouter made a noise and suddenly Sonic knew exactly what was going to happen and immediately tried to warn Marine.

"Marine! Get back-"

Sonic's voice was cut off as a beam of light blasted Marine at point blank range, sending her crashing through a window of the Kyuuri Estate.

"Marine!" shouted Sonic in alarm.

The others quickly rushed to her aid. Fiercely enraged, Sonic turned back to face his enemy and saw that he too had a crystal appendage as he once had. The others noticed too as it shone with an ethereal glow.

"He…he has a crystal! Just like I used to have…" stated Sonic.

"That's right. Very good you've finally realized who I am," the stranger said in satisfaction.

Tails was still clinging onto Sonic's leg in fear and Sonic kept trying to usher him away for his protection.

"I have? What do you…I don't know what you're talking about!" spat Sonic.

"Come on," Rouge stealthily snagged Tails to safety.

"Terios," the stranger irritably addressed Sonic again. "Have you been on this planet so long that you have forgotten even that?"

"My memory is fine! And you can quit calling me this "Teri-whatever" it is you're saying. My name is _Sonic_."

"What has happened to you?" the stranger was visibly baffled by this new revelation.

"Daddy!" Tails shouted.

In the midst of this the terrified Tails ran back towards Sonic and clung on to his leg again and Rouge went after him but wasn't suddenly unsure of whether she should intervene. Sonic unsuccessfully tried to push him off again, for Tails' own safety.

"Tails, stay back!" said Sonic under his breath.

"Hey!" the stranger yelled and Sonic turned his attention back to him. "Tell me, did you suffer any serious blows in the head when you were young?"

This question seemed to have an effect on Professor Pickle but currently the others were to overwhelmed to notice or think straight.

"What?" said Sonic, not really understanding the purpose of the question.

"Are you stupid too!?" grumbled the stranger impatiently. "I am _asking_ you, did you ever hit your head when you were a kid? Now answer me!"

Rouge forced Tails away against his wishes as Sonic clutched his head.

"Yes," he responded. "But, it was when I was really little. I don't remember anything about it."

"I see that explains it,"

The stranger obviously knew something they didn't and had come to a disappointing conclusion. Sonic gritted his teeth and decided he'd had enough of playing the pronoun game.

"Explains what!?" Sonic said stepping forwards. "What do you mean?"

"Sonic…" the Professor called out from behind and suddenly all eyes were on him.

"There's something your Uncle Chuck told me once that I think you should know," the Professor began rather dejectedly.

"A long time ago, Miles was walking through the woods when he came upon a strange object that had appeared to have fallen from the sky. When he went to examine it more closely, he found a baby blue hedgehog sealed inside a little round pod. Miles decided to take the hedgehog child home and raise him as his own. But the boy had an angry violent nature. And before long the old man was at his wits end. Then one day, there was a terrible accident. The child fell into a deep ravine and hit his head. The injury was nearly fatal. But somehow miraculously, the boy survived. What's more, after that he was no longer violent. On that day on he became a happy loving boy."

The story seemed to have an effect on his friends but Sonic was the first to regain his composure.

"That child was me, wasn't it?" Sonic confirmed.

"Yes," the Professor replied.

"But if it is true then what does that mean?" Rouge quickly butted in. "Are you saying that Sonic and this guy have some kind of connection? How's that even possible?"

Sonic looked past them and at the Armadillo who seemed to be amused at their confusion.

"Yeah, it's time you do some explaining." Sonic demanded. "First, who are you?"

The stranger chuckled to himself knowing he was going to enjoy what followed.

"Let's start with the top," the stranger began. "The truth is, you're not of this world, Terios."

Sonic tensed, he _really_ didn't want to believe that but at this point the evidence was against him. The stranger continued.

"You were born on a distant planet called Mobius. Home of the Mobian race. The most powerful warriors in the universe. You are one of _us_."

This came as another shock to the group. Sonic swallowed hard.

"And as for your other question…my name is Mighty. I'm your half brother."

 **TO BE CONTINUED**

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 **Zzzzz...wha?...oh. We reached the end of the first chapter. Either that or tl;dr. I don't blame ya if that's the case. Hmm...**

 **Well we'll just have to wait until the lazy author uploads the next piece. Hurry up back there! The audience is waiting! Oh? Sorry I was talking to the author. You thought we're one and the same?**

 **Hahahahahaha...wait. What?**


	2. The Secret of the Mighty Mobian Warrior!

**I'm supposed to put an author's comment or something here but I can't think of anything important or witty to say. Plus I'm not even the actual auth-I mean, uh...Just read the story! You didn't pay for comments right? What's that? You didn't pay at all? DUH! Like I said, you didn't pay for comments so think of this as a bonus and get back to the story! Pretend the DBZ title card theme plays here, Original/Kai/BruceFaulconer/Ocean/whatever you prefer...  
**

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Marine had recovered from the impact just in time to hear the big reveal.

"No way…Sonic has a brother!?" she said wild with disbelief.

"It's….gotta be some kind of joke!" added Rouge trying to make sense of the situation.

"If it is; it's not funny," Sonic replied sternly. Rouge had never seen Sonic so serious before. There was really no point in denying it.

"It's crazy!" said Marine. "If Sonic's really an alien like he says, what's he doing on Earth?"

Hearing this Mighty chuckled to himself which made Sonic uncomfortable, or at least more uncomfortable then he was already.

"It's not hard to understand," explained Mighty. "Terios was sent to this world with a simple mission not long after he was born: **to eliminate every Earthling on the planet**."

"What!?" exclaimed Sonic to yet another shocking revelation. Sonic was so tense he could feel every individual bead of sweat forming on his forehead.

"We Mobians may be a proud warrior race but we're also businessmen," narrated Mighty, taking pleasure in bragging about his race.

"We scour the universe in search of planets with habitable environments and then use our skills to eliminate the native life forms. Once cleared, the planets are then sold to any alien race that's willing to pay the price. For those planets whose inhabitants have high power levels, adult Mobians are sent in to subdue the territory. But to planets like this one, whose life forms are pathetic and weak, we send our infants."

"This is how _you_ came to be here Terios," Mighty specifically addressed Sonic. "Even by yourself, a year or two was more than enough time to liquidate these puny pests... You could have done it easily, if you hadn't lost your memory."

Mighty looked towards the sky. "Especially considering the massive size of the moon here," he finished.

"Hey, what're you talking about? What does the moon have to do with anything?" demanded Sonic.

"Don't play dumb!" shouted Mighty. "You _must_ know! You've lived on this planet your entire life! The full moon is key to unlocking a Mobian's true potential!"

Marine, Rouge and the Professor collectively caught on to the truth and became quite nervous. As a matter of fact they were discussing the matter only minutes ago but never once did it ever occur to them WHY the moon had such an effect on Sonic. And now it was all too clear…except to Sonic.

"Maybe I _am_ dumb, because you still aren't making any sense!" retorted Sonic. It was then that Mighty finally noticed.

"Huh? What the-?!" muttered Mighty. "Terios...! Your Lunar-crystal…!"

"Uh... excuse me?" replied a puzzled Sonic.

"What happened to your Lunar-Crystal?" demanded Mighty pointing at towards his neck. Hearing this Tails took a glance at his own crystal now aware of its real name.

"That?" said Sonic suddenly understanding what he was referring to. "It got removed a long time ago. What does it matter?"

"You fool! How could you let that happen?" complained Mighty, trying to withhold his rage. "Do you even know what you've done!? That explains how you've been able to fit in so well with these miserable creatures."

The others took much offense to that last part but there was little they could do against Mighty.

"That's enough!" exploded Sonic. "Even if it _is_ true and I'm some kind of alien from another planet, or even if you really are my half brother… **It doesn't matter**! Anyone who'd do the horrible things you say is no brother of mine!"

Sonic pulled himself together and became quite smug.

"My name is Sonic and _this_ is my home! And _you're_ not welcome here!" he addressed Mighty.

"Tell 'em, Sonic!" encouraged Rouge.

"That's right, you heard the man!" added the Professor. "Whatever his past, Sonic is one of us now. In fact, he's a better Earthling than any of us!"

"He saved the entire world before!" Marine chipped in. "Would an alien warrior do that? I don't think so!"

Much to their surprise Mighty didn't seem annoyed at all. In fact he seemed to have been anticipating something like this.

"I'm afraid it will take more than shouting to convince _me_ to leave" he walked past Sonic and co. "Powerful though we are, we Mobians have never been strong in number... What's more, our proud race was almost wiped out entirely when a giant meteor struck our home Planet Mobius. There weren't any survivors. Everyone was vaporized. That includes our respective parents, Terios."

Sonic didn't like how Mighty seemed so comfortable about breaking such news at all.

"Counting you," he continued. "There are only four known survivors left in the universe who are of Mobian descent. I was away on assignment when the meteor hit. Two other Mobians also survived. They'd been sent to conquer a distant planet, just like you. Recently, we happened upon an inhabited world that we think could fetch us a nice price. But there's just one tiny problem...Even with all three of us, it won't be an easy fight."

Sonic didn't like where this was going; Mighty reproached him again.

"And that's where _you_ come into the picture, my long lost little brother. Your power level is lower than I would have liked but even so, the four of us together should be able to manage just fine."

"Stay away from me! Back off!" Sonic walked back a few steps.

"Terios, can't you see? Open your eyes," said Mighty. "You were _born_ for this!"

Apparently Mighty was trying to put on a compassionate tone but he only came off as creepy.

"I'm scared!" whimpered Tails, now clung closely to Rouge. Sonic stepped in front of them blocking Mighty.

"That's ridiculous! You can forget it! **_I'll die_ ,** before I help you murder and an entire planet world of people!" Sonic stressed with no signs of backing down.

"Really?" a curious Mighty asked. Rouge tried her best to calm Tails down but all the commotion was terrifying him. Mighty examined Tails with interest.

"You know, there's something I've been wondering," Mighty turned his attention back to Sonic. "Is that your son? The kid behind the bat-woman?"

"Why!? What's he got to do with anything!?" Sonic tried to hide the truth.

"You can't fool me. That boy has Mobian blood…" gloated Mighty. "It's no use trying to hide it from me. I can see he has a Lunar-Crystal."

"What if he does? Huh!?" Sonic threatened and entered his combat stance.

"I wanted to reason with you, but I can see you don't know what's best for your son… So I'm afraid I'm going to have to take him with me in your place."

The others were paralyzed with fear but Sonic wasn't going to take this lying down.

"Hold it!" he started. "Don't you take one step closer to my son!"

Mighty ignored him and continued his approach.

"I'm warning you!" Sonic desperately threatened as he was all that stood between them.

In the blink of an eye, Mighty was out of sight and the next thing Sonic knew, he was right behind him. Before Sonic could even react, Mighty twisted around and kicked Sonic in the gut so hard that he was launched through the air. The others remained powerless to anything as Sonic writhed in pain.

"Daddy!" suddenly Tails broke away from Rouge while her guard was down and ran towards Sonic. "Daddy! Get up!" he cried.

"Not so fast!" Mighty scooped him of his feet by the scruff of his neck, bringing everyone back to reality.

"Miles!" the Professor shouted in horror. Tails desperately tried to break free but Mighty's grasp was just too strong. Tails desperately bawled in frustration.

"So like I said," Mighty looked down on Sonic. "I'll be taking your son and if you want to see him alive again, you'll do what your big brother tells you."

Sonic tried his best to stand up but the pain was beyond excruciating. He gave up on that and attempted to at least raise his head.

"Damn you…" he grunted in agony.

"Now then," Mighty began. "I'll give you 24 hours to think about my offer. Although let's be realistic Terios, I'm not giving you a choice. So when you decide to join us and you **will**. You should show me a gesture of your allegiance."

Tails continued to cry as Sonic tried his best to ignore the pain to no avail.

"Let's see. Oh, I think I know just the thing…" Mighty pretended to think. "You're going to annihilate one hundred of these Earthling creatures by this time tomorrow. Feel free to kill more, if you get a taste for it. Just stack the bodies over there on the beach."

"What!?" Sonic couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"I can't wait to see which fate you've chosen for your son, Terios. Now try not to worry…" Mighty added with fake sympathy. "I won't hurt my nephew unless I have to." Mighty laughed to himself.

"Lemme go, Lemme go!" Tails cried in anguish.

"Tails…No!" Sonic strained as hard as he could reaching out towards him.

"Daddy, please help me!" Tails wailed with no signs of stopping.

"I'll say it one more time." Mighty interrupted. "If you want your boy back, you'll eliminate one hundred Earthlings and bring them here, before I return in 24 hours. If you do, I'll give the boy back and you'll then have the privilege of rejoining our race. If you _don't_ …If I find out you're even a single body short, your son's mine."

"You coward!" Marine shouted at Mighty with his back turned. "He's just a kid! Leave him out of this!"

"Yeah! That's right!" Rouge boldly stressed.

"And besides…It won't work!" the Professor explained. "It doesn't matter what you do Sonic would never kill anyone!"

This got Mighty's attention and he turned to face them.

"Oh…I see...Then if you're willing to let this one go, I can take him right now and Terios doesn't have to get his hands dirty."

They had no response to this, Mighty could see that clearly.

"Suit yourself," he went on. "Your days are numbered anyway… Every creature on this planet will soon be exterminated. Once we've completed our current mission, with or without Terios' help… We'll be back to conquer Earth."

The thought of which made Sonic's friends visibly frightened.

"You...you will?" inquired the Professor prompting Mighty to laugh.

"Of course, it'll only be the three of us against billions and billions of Earthlings. Even so, I'm sure we can finish the job in under a month."

Sonic had crawled towards to Mighty and pathetically grasped his ankle.

"Did you catch all of that Terios?" Mighty said. "Struggle all you want. You know the only way out of this is to join me and the rest of the Mobians."

"Give me back my boy!" Sonic demanded.

"When I come back here tomorrow for your decision…The word I want to hear is **yes**." Mighty broke free of Sonic's grasp. "For your son's sake, you shouldn't try to fight back."

And with that Mighty levitated himself into the air again.

"Your power level is nothing compared to a real Mobian..." he continued even in from the air. "And you're definitely no match for your older brother!"

"Daddy!" Tails cried out in vain.

"I'll be looking forward to tomorrow, Terios! See you then!" Mighty sneered from afar.

"Tails!" a distraught Sonic called while grasping at the air in vain.

"Daddy, nooo! Help me! Daddy!" Tails hysterically cried. And before long he was totally out of sight.

Sonic forced himself to stand up using every last ounce of strength in his body.

"Tails" he shouted at the top of his voice only to falter from using too much energy. He collapsed to his knees gasping for air. Sonic's friends rushed to his aid.

"Sonic, are you okay?" a crestfallen Rouge asked. Sonic punched the ground in frustration.

"I'm sorry…" the melancholy Professor stated. "I wish we could've done something but he was just too strong!"

"Sonic…" Marine helped him stand up.

"Blue-Star!" Sonic shouted! Within seconds, Sonic's hover board responded to his call and revved to a halt before him. Sonic was still weak from being kicked earlier but didn't let that stop him from boarding the Blue-Star. The others restrained Sonic while the Professor tried to calm him down.

"Sonic! Think about what you're doing! Wait!"

"You can't fight him like this! You're hurt!" explained Rouge.

"I know," a depressed Sonic sat back down. "But what am I supposed to do?"

"Think! There must be something!" the Professor assured Sonic.

Together Marine and Rouge helped Sonic towards the porch.

"Hard to believe…" said Rouge bitterly. "After all this time you find out you have a brother. Too bad he turned out to be such a creep."

"So what do we do now?" asked Marine. "How do we even compete against that kinda strength...?"

A drop of water fell from Sonic's head onto his neck and suddenly the solution came to him.

"His crystal," mused Sonic. "That's it. That's his weak spot. If I can grab it somehow…it should drain his power. At least that's how it worked for me…"

"But…can you?" Marine questioned, with a glimmer of hope. "I mean, you really think you can get close enough to grab a hold of it?"

"It's useless. You can't win…" a gruff voice came from above.

Everyone collectively looked skywards in alarm to see none other than Knuckles the Echidna perched upon the roof of Kyuuri Estate with his arms crossed.

"Knuckles!" Marine and Rouge exclaimed.

Everyone was frantic, what else could possibly go wrong today? Unbeknownst to them, Knuckles had been surveying the situation discreetly and at last made up his mind. Knuckles jumped down and stood before them.

"In case you didn't notice," began Knuckles, walking towards Sonic. "His power level is nothing short of extraordinary. Far higher than ours. You're a fool if you think you can beat him alone…"

Knuckles had walked passed Sonic.

"However…" he continued with his back turned. "If we were to team up, combine our strengths, and face him together, then perhaps... there's hope."

"Hold on," started Sonic. "This isn't like you. Why would you suddenly offer to help me?"

"Don't get me wrong..." Knuckles asserted. "This is business. I have no interest in helping you play the hero again...I care even less what happens to your son."

Knuckles scowled in disgust. "I just don't want that alien monster interfering with my conquest of this planet!"

This statement scared Flicky so she hid behind Professor Pickle. Knuckles ignored them.

"So here's the deal: I'll join you as long as it takes to defeat these Mobian warriors. Of course, as soon as we're finished with that, I plan to crush you like a bug! Then continue my plans for world domination" Knuckles concluded in a smug manner.

"That won't happen…" Sonic confidently replied. "I'll make sure of it. Still, the part about teaming up is actually a good idea."

"It might be crazy," said Sonic looking over his shoulder. "But you're right. It's the only way."

"Then we're agreed. Just have to deal with it."

Sonic and Knuckles turned and faced each other, finalizing their deal.

"Teaming up with Sonic," mused Knuckles. "I only hope I can suppress my urge to vomit."

Sonic ignored this and looked towards Rouge.

"Rouge, I need to borrow your Emerald Radar for a while."

"Uh sure, ok" Rouge realized Sonic planned to track Tails down using the Chaos Emerald in his hat.

After obtaining the radar, Sonic jumped upon his hoverboard.

"Hey Knuckles," said Sonic. "Do you think you're gonna be able to keep up with my Blue-Star?"

"Ha, your silly little hoverboard may work for you, but my own travel method is a bit more advanced," replied Knuckles, referring to his gliding abilities.

Sonic was satisfied with his answer. Together they raced off into the sky towards the horizon.

Back at the crash site where he first landed, Mighty had locked Tails up inside his space pod. Tails still persisted to bang against its window begging to be released. Mighty was glad to finally hear the end of his whining.

"Now then," he said to himself. Since he had 24 hours to kill, he decided he might as well find himself a meal. Before he could fully step out of the crater his Scouter started to beep rapidly.

"That's strange," Mighty said out loud. "My Scouter's giving me a warning…" he engaged the visor and observed its readings. From what he saw, he was…surprised to say the least.

"A power level of **710**!?" he said not quite believing it. "And it's close!?"

Mighty visually scanned the area and could see nothing but grass, trees and mountainsides. There was no one around this area for miles. That could only mean…

Mighty turned around towards the pod and the Scouter was going wild. Even from a distance he could still hear the loud cries coming from the fox boy inside. And yet the Scouter was assigning him as the source of the danger. He reset the darn contraption twice and kept getting the same reading.

"So that's it," he concluded. "The damn thing's broken. That almost gave me a scare."

With that he turned off the Scouter and made his way towards some fruit bearing trees.

High in skies Sonic and Knuckles made their way closer towards the crash site.

"We're getting close," Sonic informed Knuckles. "We should try to sneak up on him."

"That won't work," Knuckles cut in. "The direct approach is best."

"Huh?" said Sonic.

"He's wearing some sort of sensing device," explained Knuckles. "Seems to tell him where his enemies located. It even gives some indication of their strength."

"So he might already know we're coming after him?" asked Sonic.

"You can almost guarantee he does,"

"Okay then. I guess that means we don't have any other choice but to attack him _head on_!"

Mighty was annoyed with the lack of meat in the area but he decided to settle upon fruit. Any meal was better than no meal. As he reproached his pod with his findings his Scouter gave him another warning.

"Again?" he spat in disgust. He reengaged his visor to see what it said this time.

"Same reading as before. Urgh, stupid Scouter!" grumbled Mighty. But when he reset it this time, it showed another warning.

"Two more readings?" he thought. "And they're both headed this way…" Mighty looked towards the direction he came from earlier.

"Yes…they're fast. Power levels of **322** and **324**."

Mighty examined his visor closely and collected his thoughts.

"The larger one, that reading is the same as Terios. But it couldn't be him…could it? No! There's no way he's stupid enough to think he could defeat me…And besides he couldn't find me even if he wanted to."

Mighty decided he'd had enough and turned off his Scouter.

"I give up. This thing is completely busted."

The second he walked away, the Scouter came to life again and Mighty turned around in disbelief.

"Impossible!" he said out loud. "He's here!?"

And low and behold, right before him Sonic and Knuckles had arrived. His opponents locked eyes with him for a few moments until Mighty decided to break the ice.

"How did you know where to find me?" asked Mighty who was quite impressed.

"That is none of your business," quickly retorted Sonic.

"Fair enough," said Mighty. "Alright then, I'll try a different question…"

Mighty veraciously took a bite of his fruit.

"I'm curious," he said with his mouthful. "What exactly do you two fools think you're doing?"

"Isn't that obvious? I've come to take my son back!" asserted Sonic.

Tails who had given up on all hopes of escape, sat sulking in the pod, until he heard the sound of Sonic's voice which caught his attention.

"Hmph," Mighty scoffed. "Let me get this straight, you mean you're one of the last surviving Mobians and you're refusing to join up with the rest of your kind?"

"Yeah, that's _exactly_ what I mean."

"You're actually going against your older brother?"

"Like I said before, you're no brother of mine."

"Terios," Mighty said with faint pity. "I always thought you'd have a little more sense than this…"

"That's enough!" Knuckles boldly interrupted. "I'm **_not_ ** interested in your little family squabble!"

And with this Knuckles cast off his _Hammer Gloves_ and _weighted cape_ and they fell to the ground with a loud thud. Mighty's Scouter reacted to this motion.

"His power level just jumped to **408** …" Mighty thought to himself.

"I see you've still been wearing your training weights too, huh Knuckles?" inquired Sonic whilst removing his _Stomping Shoes_ and _Magic Hand Gloves_ for more maneuverability. "Something tells me I'm not going to want to hold anything back for this one."

"Now Terios' is all the way up to **416** …" Mighty threw the fruit away and scoffed. "You think that little increase will be enough to beat me?" he taunted.

"What?" replied Sonic.

"What fools you truly are. Coming here with those pitiful levels thinking you could take me on. I can see I am going to have to put you both in your place-"

"You go ahead and _try_!" interjected Sonic. "Just because you're stronger than we are, doesn't mean can't win. You may have strength but we got a strategy."

"Then we'll see how long your strategy keeps you alive," Mighty responded. "I'm sorry brother. But I was thinking about my offer…and I've changed my mind. You'd probably just slow the rest of us down."

Mighty began powering up and a strong breeze surrounded him as he did.

"And for betraying the Mobian race…" he shouted. "You _will_ **_die_**!"

Knuckles and Sonic entered their combat stances and Mighty charged towards them with lightning fast speed. Despite the duo anticipating his attack, Mighty's faster reflexes allowed him to penetrate their defences and ambush the duo from behind. Using both arms simultaneously, Mighty delivered a powerful elbow strike to each of them. Sonic used the impact to his advantage by curling up into a ball and dashing away, putting some distance between him and his opponent. Likewise Knuckles used his _Screwdriver_ technique to dash to safety and regain his balance. Even with Knuckles assisting, Sonic realized Mighty still outclassed him.

"I know. Here in your final moments, why don't I tell you a little secret?" chuckled Mighty sadistically.

Usually he would never admit his shortcomings but considering Sonic and Knuckles were already dead men walking, adding insult to injury would be fun.

"The other two surviving Mobian warriors that I mentioned earlier…they both have power levels even higher than mine."

Sonic and Knuckles widened their eyes at yet another bewildering revelation. No matter how many times their realities had been shattered previously, there was seemingly no end to the surprises Mighty held.

 _Just what kind of new horror is this? Even if Sonic and Knuckles somehow managed to defeat Mighty; there are still two even stronger Mobians left to face. Is all hope lost?_

 _Find out next time!_

* * *

 **And another chapter done. Yeah whatever. We'll get the next one up as soon as it's done. But then again you'd expect that right? I mean, what's the point in uploading unfinished chapters? I don't know anyone who does that. But I couldn't do that even if I wanted to since I haven't even started. I better go find that lazy punk Whiskers and get him back to work-I mean, I better go and feed my cat and then go about the creative process...heh heh  
**


	3. Sonic and Knuckles' Desperate Attack!

**I always make spelling mistakes but never notice them until the darn story is published so let me know if you find anything like that.** **Whatever**.

* * *

Mighty was enjoying himself. Watching Sonic and Knuckles' pathetic attempts to beat him was too much fun.

"Only now when it's too late, do you understand what it means to face a Mobian..." boasted Mighty. "I tried to warn you brother, I asked you to see reason! But you refused to listen and for that you'll **die**..."

"And even if we don't, there's still two more Mobians out there right?" replied Sonic unnerved.

"So what?" added an irritated Knuckles. "Personally, I find the prospect _exciting_."

"Heh. Yeah _you_ would," scoffed Sonic. "But " **exciting** " is probably not the word I'd use right now. To be completely honest, I'm pretty terrified."

"Yes, I don't blame you!" gloated Mighty. "I suppose I'd feel the same way if I ever found myself staring at death in the face. So enjoy the feeling while it lasts, very soon you'll be feeling nothing at all..."

"I'm done listening to this! Where's my son!?" demanded Sonic. "Where have you hidden him!? Tell me!"

"I haven't hidden him anywhere," Mighty casually replied. "He was annoying me with his crying, so I shut him up. I tucked him away in my space pod, in the crater behind you."

Sonic quickly inspected the crater from a distance to find the space pod at the center. Knuckles also took a quick glance understanding the information could possibly come in handy.

"In there, huh?" thought Sonic. "Tails…"

Focusing his vision, Sonic could see Tails slamming his hands against the window of the pod, desperately crying for help.

"Help! Daddy! I- I want out! Save me! Daddy!" screamed Tails.

"Just hang on, Tails!" Sonic shouted. "I'm gonna get you outta there really soon, I promise!"

Mighty laughed manically.

"Don't get fox boy's hopes up!" he taunted. "You know that's a promise you can't keep. You'd have to get through me first, and that's not likely to happen!"

"Fine…Let's do this." Said Sonic as he re-entered his fighting stance.

"Good, 'cause I'm _sick_ of this talk!" Knuckles spat whilst doing the same.

Mighty stood perfectly still preferring his opponents to come to him. Together Sonic and Knuckles rampaged rapidly and recklessly towards him yet again, however this time they followed their assault with a barrage of punches and kicks. Mighty effortlessly dodged every single one of them. In unison Sonic and Knuckles quickly changed their tactic to a sneak attack from behind but Mighty's tough shell was the perfect shield. Spinning upwards from where he stood, Mighty delivered a powerful kick to both of them, launching them into the air. Sonic spin-balled back towards him and Knuckles followed suit. Mighty escaped by levitating into the sky and the duo rocketed from the ground in pursuit. Mighty took this opportunity to unleash his _Double-Beam_ attack. He raised both of his arms up then quickly brought them down discharging energy beam from his palms at his opponents. Sonic used his quick reflexes to dash out of the way; the slower Knuckles was less fortunate...

The beams collectively hit the ground scattering debris in all directions. Sonic had lost track of Mighty amidst the surrounding smoke filling the air.

"What!? Where'd he go!?" said Sonic in frustration.

"I'm right here," Mighty whispered from behind before kicking Sonic though the air.

Mighty laughed at their helplessness whilst Sonic picked himself up from the ground. Wiping the blood from his lips he turned his attention to Knuckles on the ground a little further away.

"Hey, are you okay, Knuckles!?" Sonic called out to him.

Sonic couldn't believe what he was seeing. The energy beam had singed Knuckles' entire left arm. It hung by his shoulder lifelessly, charred and burned black. Even though Knuckles was his enemy, Sonic could not turn a blind eye to such brutality. Knuckles on the other hand seemed to already be over it.

"Don't worry..." he assured with a grin whilst clutching his arm. "Trust me, it's not as bad as it looks. I only need one arm to fight."

Mighty sadistically laughed at his opponents misfortune.

"Who are you kidding!? You're half-dead already!" he laughed out loud.

Sonic was incredibly pissed off with Mighty's callous attitude but also infuriated with his own inability to land even a single hit.

"Hey Sonic," inquired Knuckles. "I don't suppose you have any new tricks up your sleeve that you've been holding back?"

"Yeah, I wish..." lied Sonic. "Sorry, I've got nothin'."

"Hah! You've been slacking..." Knuckles scoffed. "Luckily for you, _I've_ spent the last few months perfecting a new attack..."

"What are you two whispering about?" questioned Mighty. "Some new _strategy_ , perhaps? Please...What say you quit wasting my time and just give up?!"

The duo ignored him and resumed formulating a plan in hushed tones.

"Can you do this attack with only one arm?" asked Sonic.

"Yeah, that's not a problem," replied Knuckles. "But I will need some time to charge up my energy. A few minutes, that's all."

Mighty watched them with carefully, eagerly awaiting their next move.

"You'll have to find a way to keep him occupied until I'm ready" continued Knuckles. "You think you can do that?"

"You got it," pledged Sonic, as Mighty stood back in anticipation.

"Heh, ironically, I'd been saving this attack to kill you..." an amused Knuckles pointed out.

"And now you might end up using it to save me, huh?" teased Sonic.

"Then consider it a preview," responded Knuckles. "If we do manage to beat this guy-you're next!"

"Alright, you've got yourself a deal," said Sonic. "After we win, I'll let you take your best shot!"

Sonic used his _Super-Peel-Out_ to attain a faster launch speed and charged towards Mighty, engaging him on a one on one fistfight. Mighty easily blocked Sonic's punches but Sonic anticipating this focused solely on preventing him from returning fire. Meanwhile Knuckles concentrated on the spot to summon the energy needed for the attack.

After the first minute, Sonic was already beginning to tire himself out allowing Mighty to throw a barrage of attacks in retaliation. Still Sonic kept up his defences buying Knuckles the time he needed no matter how much of a beating he had to endure. Several purple orbs of energy had formed around Knuckles and soon began circulating around him with increasing speed, until he was enveloped in a mauve glow.

Mighty however didn't notice this, as he was entirely focusing his attention on Sonic.

"Aren't you persistent!" he taunted as Sonic dashed skywards.

As he ascended through the sky, Sonic cupped his hands together and begun charging his signature attack.

"Sup-er…"

Mighty's Scouter issued him a new warning.

"Huh," he observed it's new reading. "His power level's rising..."

"Son-ic..." a mini blue orb of energy formed in Sonic's hands.

Mighty observed cautiously until it struck him that he'd forgotten about the Echidna and quickly turned around to analyze him with the Scouter. Knuckles was surrounded by a bright red aura.

"What?!" Mighty gasped. "And his too!? His power level's shot up to **1020**...And it's still climbing!"

"BOOM!"

Sonic's energy wave spiraled towards Mighty with blindingly fast speeds. Mighty sped off to dodge the attack but Sonic from the air guided the energy wave towards him in whichever direction he ran.

"Fine! Let's have it!" challenged Mighty, turning around to face the attack head on.

It was stronger than he anticipated and the impact nearly blew him off his feet but he held on as hard as he could. There was another explosion from the collision and the air was filled with smoke. Sonic was anxious for it to clear. He was staring to have doubts about the strategy and decided he would have to utilize the trick he'd been saving.

As the dust settled, Mighty stood there shaken up from the attack but otherwise unharmed.

"He deflected it...!" Sonic noted from the air.

"Neat, huh?" Mighty gloated . "Now, can you do the same?"

Mighty twisted around and fired a blast of energy towards Sonic. Sonic didn't dodge it this time and attempted to counter attack, however that seemingly failed as he ended up plummeting to the ground. As soon as he landed Mighty rushed towards him ready to deliver the final blow. Before he could strike something caught his eye causing him to turn around.

And there, behind them stood Knuckles with a bloodthirsty smile. The aura around him had grown twice as fierce and was releasing heat waves so warm, the air around him went hazy.

"Power level... **1330**!?" said a baffled Mighty. "Somehow, he's concentrating all of his energy into his fist!"

Knuckles locked eyes with Mighty, as the tables had turned.

"They've been holding back! They can alter their power levels at will!" Mighty exclaimed out loud.

" **DIE** Mobian!" yelled Knuckles. " _ **Maximum-Heat-Knuckle**_ _!"_

Knuckles thrust his arm forwards as if it was an organic rocket launcher and it unleashed an incredible beam of heat energy shaped like his fist…and it was heading straight for Mighty's face.

The whole area was filled with light as the attack made its impact. Knuckles regained his breath as the typical smoke cleared the area. In the distance he could see that his attack had partially decimated a mountain in the distance. And right before him stood a still alive and infuriated Mighty.

"He...He dodged it!" Knuckles muttered with disbelief.

"Congratulations," Mighty sarcastically began. "You actually managed to give me a little scratch..." he said referring to his now torched shell steaming with heat. It must have shielded him from the full effects of the attack!

"And for that, you will pay _dearly_!" Mighty added as he raised his hand in the air to charge his _Birdie_ attack. Knuckles was too exhausted to defend or run away. So _this_ was how it was going to end? Damn it, and they had come so close…

"Say goodbye!" screamed Mighty as he swung for the final attack.

All of a sudden Mighty felt a sharp pain in his chest and his body went limp, much to the surprise of Knuckles. Mighty looked down to see that his neck and Lunar-Crystal had been lassoed with some sort of lightning based tether. And who was holding on to the other end of the Enerbeam? It was none other than Sonic!

"You let your guard down," taunted Sonic with great pleasure. "Now I've got you by the neck!"

Sonic sent forth a surge of energy forcing Mighty down on his knees. In no time Mighty's entire body was paralysed and he writhed in pain on the ground.

"How did you manage to-"

"Now Knuckles!" Sonic interrupted. "I've got him! Hurry up and charge your attack again!"

"Well done, Sonic!" lauded Knuckles.

Sonic the sly dog; he DID have a surprise planned after all, thought Knuckles.

"Now hold him still so we can send him to hell!" Knuckles shouted. "I only have enough energy to use this technique once more so don't let go no matter what!"

Knuckles began charging up his attack again and for the first time Mighty looked genuinely afraid.

"Terios please," he pleaded. "Would you really kill your brother? You-your own flesh and blood!?"

"Shut up!" snapped Sonic. "We've already been through all this; as far as I'm concerned I don't have a brother! Especially not one as horrible as _you_..."

Sonic enforced tighter grip with the Enerbeam.

"Besides," Sonic added. "You tried to kill me first!"

"Yes-yes, you're right!" Mighty strained. "You've shown me the error of my ways! Let me go, and I'll leave you and your son in peace!"

"Don't be fooled, Sonic!" warned Knuckles. "He's lying! He doesn't mean a word of what he's saying! There's no way he'll just leave quietly now!"

"Please believe me brother," Mighty whimpered. "It's true, I've done some horrible things. I realize that… You're right to be cautious. I will leave as I say. I promise. On my life, I promise!"

Sonic didn't believe him and only held on even tighter but at the same time; he had no heart for killing. Even if it was someone as horrible as Mighty.

"Do you really mean that?" Sonic asked out loud.

"I do! I swear it on my heart!" cried Mighty and mustered every fiber of strength remaining to put his hand on his chest despite the intense pain.

"No, Sonic!" screeched Knuckles. "Don't let go of him! This is all a ploy!"

"Please, Terios! You have to believe me! I'm begging you…" Mighty sniveled.

However Sonic refused to let go, instead tightening his grip. Whether Mighty was telling the truth or not he was too dangerous to be kept alive. Even if it was selfish of him, Mighty had to be killed for the greater good.

"Sonic!" Knuckles tried to warn Sonic but it was too late.

Suddenly there was a loud crunch and a flash of light. In that moment Mighty twisted himself upright and delivered a powerful elbow strike to Sonic's face. Sonic was thrown to the ground and Mighty stepped on his chest to make sure he couldn't escape. Sonic opened his eyes to see that out of desperation Mighty had destroyed his Lunar-Crystal to rid him of his one weakness.

"You fool!" Mighty sneered. "In all my travels, I've never met anyone as stupid as you!"

"You were lying!" cursed Sonic.

"Of course I was," laughed Mighty. "I'm a first-class warrior! I do what it takes to survive without hesitation; even if that means lying to my own brother. I suppose I should thank you for giving me the time to stall but instead…"

Mighty tortured Sonic by repeatedly stamping on him, all the while enjoying his cries of pain.

"Instead, I shall destroy you!" he said before turning back towards Knuckles. "Well go on, what are you waiting for? Let's see your little attack."

"Damn it, I can't," realized Knuckles. "He'll just dodge it again…"

"Correct," Mighty agreed and kicked Sonic really hard causing him to howl in pain.

A few sharp cracks were heard and in the blink of an eye Mighty's space pod detonated with large explosion. The trio looked towards the crater to see an enraged Tails slowly flying out of the crater. In a stark contrast to his usual meek and timid self, Tails had clenched his fists and sported a hostile grimace.

"What!?" exclaimed Mighty. "What is this? Impossible..."

"Tails run! Run!" urged Sonic repeatedly. "Run away Tails! Run Tails! Run!"

Instead Tails stepped down and spun his two-tails even faster until they reached breakneck speeds. Within moments he'd gained a bright yellow aura as well. Mighty aimed his Scouter at Tails and saw the numbers rapidly increasing. When they finally stopped Mighty was astonished.

"It's at… **1307**!?" said Mighty.

"You stop hurting...my daddy!" screeched Tails.

Without warning Tails propelled himself forwards, fast as lightning and twice as dangerous. Whilst still in the air, he curled into a ball incorporating a spin into his attack. Mighty was almost caught off guard and spun around to defend himself with his shell. However Tails' crashed into him with such force that it fractured with a loud crack. Mighty shrieked as he collapsed to the ground in agony, whilst Sonic and Knuckles looked on in awe. Tails fell to the ground but quickly got up again with no problem.

"Tails…?" said a bewildered Sonic as Tails approached.

"Daddy...!" said Tails; now back to his typically shy self.

"Did you...?" Sonic still couldn't quite comprehend what he just saw.

"You're hurt, daddy..." said a concerned Tails.

"You…You _brat_!" stated Mighty with blistering fury.

"Go! Run away!" urged Sonic as Mighty staggered towards them. "Go, son! Fast as you can!"

"But what about you!?" protested Tails.

Mighty soon approached them and now Tails was mewling with fear again.

"Hurry! Please! Just go!" Sonic pleaded but Tails was paralyzed with fear. Mighty's Scouter gave him a new reading.

"What?" he spat. "You're kidding. Now his power level has dropped down to _**one**_?!"

Tails slowly tried to back away but his legs wouldn't obey him.

"Yes…" pondered Mighty. "That's got to be it. It changes with his emotions."

"Run, Tails!" shouted Sonic but Mighty quickly backhanded Tails so hard that it knocked him unconscious.

"Tails! Tails!" desperately called Sonic.

Mighty began to limp towards Tails to finish the job.

"No, stop!" begged Sonic, crawling after him. "Don't do it, please! He's…He's just a-"

"- _just a child?"_ Mighty picked up where Sonic left. "Is that what you were going to say? Don't make me laugh... This _child_ has a far greater power level than either one of you. And if he ever learns to use that power, he could become a serious threat. That's why it's best that I kill him now. But don't worry brother, you'll see your son again...in the next dimension!"

Mighty savagely laughed as he continued his advance towards Tails.

"No! Wait!" threatened Sonic, still on the ground.

Mighty looked at the KO-ed Tails with disgust. He then raised his arm to ready the final strike.

"To think that this puny little brat is the first opponent who's ever caused me any real damage on the battlefield... An embarrassment I will soon erase!"

"Now **die**!" said Mighty as brought down his fist.

But before he knew it Sonic had snuck up on Mighty, restraining him with a powerful full-nelson lock.

"Why, you little!" growled Mighty trying his best to break free however his damaged shell only made that task even harder than usual.

"Knuckles! Quick! Your attack! Do it! Do it now!" yelled Sonic.

"Finally!" agreed Knuckles. "It's about time you decided to make your move! Now hold him! It's almost ready!"

Mighty refused to give up, constantly struggling to break free but Sonic firmly held on ignoring the pain in his ribs from his earlier beating.

"Hurry Knuckles!" pleaded Sonic. "I can't keep this up for long!"

"Are you really this stupid!?" reasoned Mighty. "How do you expect to dodge the blast and hold me at the same time!? If you're behind me when he fires, we'll both die!"

"Then I guess that's the way it's gonna have to be _brother_." Sonic chuckled in despair.

"What!?" exclaimed a flabbergasted Mighty. "Are you insane?! Your son! Think about him!"

"I am!" Sonic retorted. "This is the only way to defeat you!"

"Alright, Sonic..." guffawed Knuckles. "If that's what you want, I won't hold back. It's no secret I've wanted you dead for a long time... I won't pass up this chance!"

"Wait! Please let me go..." cried Mighty, practically grasping at straws. "I was wrong, I'm sorry! Release me-I'll leave this planet!"

"Right," quipped Sonic sarcastically. "Forget it! I'll never fall for that!"

"But I mean it this time!" said Mighty in hysterics. "Please! Don't do this Terios! Don't throw both our lives away like this!"

"Knuckles! Hurry up!" hollered Sonic.

"Sorry to keep you waiting..." Knuckles smirked. "Prepare yourself Sonic! It's time!"

"Do it!" replied Sonic.

"Right!" responded Knuckles.

"Stop…!" Mighty demanded in protest.

" _ **Maximum-Heat-Knuckle**_ _!"_

Knuckles unleashed the attack a second time sending forth another fist shaped energy blast. Mighty screamed in anguish as the fist beam hit him square on in the torso.

"N-N-N-o-o-o-o-o!" he shrieked, as it impaled his body inflicting unbearable pain.

In those few moments, time seemed to slow down and Mighty stopped making any noise at all. And just as abruptly, everything returned to normal as the beam exploded out of his back and continued its path through Sonic, effectively killing them both. And as soon as Knuckles' attack was complete, the duo collapsed to the ground with circular scars burning brightly on their torsos. Mighty coughed and hacked in pain whilst Sonic just managed to smile in satisfaction at his pyrrhic victory.

Knuckles stood there observing his handiwork. Sonic was as good as dead. He'd gotten what he wanted right? And yet…he felt nothing. He had dedicated his whole life to revenge so why wasn't he satisfied? It was probably because of the damn Mobians. That must be it, dismissed Knuckles. Knuckles approached the dying Mighty who trembled in angry confusion.

"How did…this happen?" he coughed. "How…could I lose…to these…fools. Terios… I didn't think…he'd do it...that...he'd really sacrifice himself..."

"Don't worry," snarked Knuckles. "I doubt Sonic will stay dead for long."

"What?!" frowned Mighty.

"You heard me," replied Knuckles, taking delight in adding insult to injury. "On this planet, we have these things called the Chaos Emeralds. Gather all seven and together they have the power to grant almost any wish. I'm sure Sonic's friends will use 'em to revive him..."

"Damn you…" grunted Mighty before changing his tone. "Still...I... thank you for the information. Everything... that's happened here today…has been transmitted to...my…two Mobian comrades, deep in outer space…"

"What?" said Knuckles.

"When they learn that I've been beaten..." Mighty coughed in between breaths. "They'll come... to...avenge me...They'll wipe you out...you...and every living thing on this planet!"

Knuckles was not liking what he was hearing and Mighty took great satisfaction in that.

"You won't have a chance..." Mighty spat. "You're as good as dead already!"

"The...other Mobians..." said Sonic overhearing Mighty. "When? When will they be here?"

"One year..." sneered Mighty. "One short year..."

"Two of them…" muttered Knuckles. "Even stronger...than him?"

"How sweet does...that victory…taste now? They'll…soon have you writhing like the worms you are!" Mighty snickered.

Knuckled gritted his teeth in fury and delivered a devastating _Hammer Punch_ to Mighty's neck finally killing him on the spot.

"You thought that was funny, huh?" snarled Knuckles. "Well, we'll just see who has the last laugh when it's all said and done."

Knuckles turned back to Sonic and told him "It's over. He's dead."

From high in the skies a mini-jet zoomed towards the battle zone.

"Oh no!" exclaimed Rouge. "Only one of them's still standing..."

"Who? Which one is it?" an anxious Marine asked.

"It's Knuckles!" confirmed the Professor.

Rouge wanted to fly down there immediately herself but unfortunately she had opted to pilot the jet, forcing her to slowly land the darn thing before they could help Sonic.

Far away on a distant planet many galaxies from Earth, Mighty's comrades had heard practically everything that had happened to him. The two were sitting down besides a campfire which was certainly incongruous to the setting, as the whole lakeside was littered with corpses of the Planet's native race. The smaller of the two: Shadow the Hedgehog took huge veracious bite out of the meat he'd been roasting.

"Hmph," he mumbled. "Mighty got himself killed-"

"- **Serves him right**!" interrupted a mechanized voice. "Pathetic. If he can't handle a couple of puny fighters with power levels less than a thousand..."

The voice belonged to his bulky built-like-tank robotic companion Omega. Omega wasn't his real name, that's just what he'd been assigned after his surgery. If there was any Mobian who cared for nothing but the mere prospect of destruction, it was Omega. It was this very attitude that nearly got him killed and thus came the need for his robotocization. However instead of making him value his life more, it had the opposite effect. With no desire/need to eat, sleep or breed anymore, all that remained was homicidal killing machine.

"So what is our next course of action?" inquired Omega as he sapped an alien body of its nutrients by absorbing the fluids through his metallic claws.

"Should we put this planet on hold and head for Earth and kill those Earthlings?" asked Omega.

"A waste of time…however," paused Shadow. "Those things, _Chaos Emeralds_ I believe?"

"Correct," Omega stated. "They claimed they could grant almost any wish,"

"I'd say that's worth investigating," said Shadow. "If the story is true, we can have practically anything we want... Immortality. Eternal youth. You name it."

"I already possess both of those things," responded Omega as he began draining water from the lake. And yet he was going senile and could still die by unconventional means thought Shadow.

"But I agree that there is always room for improvement," said Omega referring to his few vital needs. "With those Emeralds we could be the most unstoppable force in the universe!"

"Precisely," agreed Shadow. "We'll force Terios' friends to hand over the Chaos Emeralds and once they tell us how to use them, we'll eliminate them and anyone who stands in our way. Along the way we could even wish back Mighty."

"Is that a joke?" chortled Omega with his booming metallic voice. "Why would we waste a wish on that worthless scum? Any Mobian who can't stand up to such weaklings is not fit to be on our side. Once we have total power we'll have no need for anyone else!"

"Yes," replied Shadow. "I won't," he added silently.

As his superior, Shadow didn't like Omega's attitude one bit. Though with his home planet destroyed, it was a title in name only. Why did they even stick together anymore? They had little camaraderie together despite being the last of their kind. Heck, Omega didn't even _look_ like a Mobian anymore. There may come day when Omega would have to be…recycled.

"Well then it's settled," said Shadow. "Let's get moving."

"One moment," snickered Omega. "I must dispose my waste fluid."

With no warning, his chrome plated crotch plate opened up and a jet stream of black oil spurt out from within. And if Shadow wasn't disgusted enough, Omega ignited the oil stream thus setting fire to whatever it landed on; Omega seemingly enjoyed his handiwork. Shadow had seen some revolting things in his time but this took the cake. The doctor that rebuilt Omega must've had a really twisted sense of humor.

"Oh…damn it…Omega," he cursed repulsively.

Back on Earth, Knuckles quickly explained everything to Sonic's three friends catching them up to date.

"That's everything," he concluded.

"Ah... I see," replied the Professor.

"Sonic! C'mon…you with me?!" Marine tried her best to wake him. "Can ya' hear me, buddy? Oh no…"

"I think Tails is gonna be okay..." said Rouge as she cradled him. "Looks like he just got knocked for a loop."

"Good... He's safe..." whispered Sonic.

"Sonic…" said a dejected Marine as she held his hand.

"Amy would…never forgive me if…he got hurt..." Sonic managed to get out.

"Oh, Sonic..." said Rouge now most sombre.

"Marine," Sonic struggled to speak. "Please...take...take care of…Ta-Tails for me..."

"Yeah, sure buddy..." Marine hastily replied. "But it's not going to come to that, okay? You're going to be fine! Just hang in there buddy!

"Sorry Marine," Sonic chuckled. "But it's…too late for…me this time…I know it..."

"Well…don't you worry..." assured Marine. "We'll find the Emeralds and bring you back!"

"Sounds...great…" smiled Sonic as he closed his eyes for good.

His friends collectively gasped as his breathing stopped.

"Sonic?" a grief stricken Marine cried. "SONIC!"

 _Sonic has made the ultimate sacrifice to defeat Mighty. However a new threat approaches…Can the Earth survive without its greatest hero?_

 _Find out next time._

* * *

 **Yeah I never said I wouldn't take a extra few liberties when adapting the source material. Don't worry the story will still be largely the same but let's just say small tibits like Omega here will be spiced up to keep things fresh. Think of it as the same sandwich just with slightly different bread. It won't be that bad. At least I won't make Greedo shoot first...**


	4. The One Million Mile Special Stage!

**Took a lot of liberties with this one. Mostly because of the lack of Sonic characters to take the places of the originals.** **But don't worry I have a counterpart planned for every major character in the series. Kudos to you if you know about the Babylon Guardian.**

* * *

All was quiet at "The Home of Amy Rose." A few birds flew overhead chirping and the weather was as delightful as ever. Sitting inside doing some interior decorating, Amy was lost in thought.

"I bet Sonic and the others are having the time of their lives over at Professor Pickle's house right about now," she pondered. "I do hope Tails is getting along with everybody..."

Then suddenly it occurred to her, this was Tails she was talking about.

"What am I thinking?" she giggled. "I worry too much. He's such a well-behaved little boy. I wish I could have gone with them but there's too much work to be done right now."

"Hello? May I come in!?" a voice called as a man in his 50's, let himself in.

"Oh hi, Commander Tower. What brings you here?" said Amy.

Retired Commander Tower was one of the most well respected and high ranking members of G.U.N. Back in the day, he became one of Sonic's allies and felt personally indebted to him when Sonic saved his life during a battle against the _Black Ribbon Army_ : an alien organization who sought the chaos emeralds. Though G.U.N. had long since disbanded, after the fall of the Black Arms. Due to his heterochromia condition his left eye was green while his right was brown.

"Hello Amy," said the Commander. "On behalf of my people and myself I brought a few presents for your son. I hope you like them."

"Thank you sir, but you didn't have to go through all this trouble."

"It's no problem I assure you," the Commander chuckled. "If it weren't for Sonic, I wouldn't' even be here today. So it's the least I can do."

"Okay, Sonic and Tails are out at the moment but I'm sure they'll be back pretty soon. Since you came all this way why don't you sit for a bit? I'm sure Sonic won't be long," said Amy.

At site of the great battle that had ensured, Sonic's friends mourned over their loss.

"Sonic! SONIC!" Marine cried. "Please, you can't be dead! Come on, wake up!"

"He's gone…" said Rouge shedding a single tear. "I can't believe our Sonic is actually gone!"

Marine tried giving him CPR but deep down she knew it was a futile effort. She looked at his lifeless body with grief only to see it glow for a moment before disappearing all together.

"He disappeared!" exclaimed the Professor.

"Figures..." smirked Knuckles. "This is Tikal's doing. I can't think of anyone else capable of such a thing. She's probably got some plan and wants to make contact with his spirit or something."

"Hope she knows what she's doing," said Marine as she went over to retrieve Tails' hat.

"Well Tikal is the guardian of the Master Emerald," assured the Professor. "I'm sure Sonic will be fine."

"All the same, we need to start gathering up the other six Chaos Emeralds so we can revive Sonic right away" said Marine.

"Yeah..." agreed Rouge. "Though we're gonna need all the help we can get. And of course, Espio's out running around who knows where!"

"Well, you're the one who chased him off," replied Marine in a sassy manner.

"That reminds me," interrupted the Professor. "I've been curious about something... How did Sonic's brother manage to track him down so quickly?"

"With that device he's wearing," answered Knuckles whilst retrieving his fallen attire. "Attached to his face. Apparently, it reads P _ower Levels_ and tracks their location."

"I see," said the Professor. "Marine, Rouge, can one of you please get that gadget off his face for me?"

"Hands are kind of full here," said Rouge referring to Tails.

"Oh alright," Marine reluctantly volunteered. "But if he so much as twitches, I'm outta here..."

Marine cautiously approached and tried pulling it off Mighty's body but it seemed to be stuck. Out of fear and frustration she unknowingly kicked his body off it and ran back with the device to Professor Pickle. The Professor put on his glasses and observed the device carefully.

"Hmm," he mumbled. "Well that's good. It appears as though it's still got power, at least."

Upon closer inspection of the interior the Professor couldn't help but be impressed.

"Wow, this is extraordinary stuff..." he said. "It's a little scuffed up, but I think I may be able to do something with it."

"You really think so?" inquired Marine. "That's awesome, Professor!"

"Well, I haven't actually fixed it yet…" stated the Professor quite modestly. "I'll need some time to figure it out first… But if I can get it working, we can use it to locate Espio and Vector and all the others."

"In any case," interjected Rouge. "I think we should head back home and work there."

"Agreed," said the Professor. "I suppose there's not much else we can do here."

"Okay," Marine took charge. "We'll get you guys back to the Professor's place and then I'll start looking for the remaining Chaos Emeralds.

"What are your plans in the meantime Knuckles?" asked Rouge only to widen her eyes at him.

The trio of friends were startled by Knuckles' strange behavior: snarling where he stood as if he was trying to restrain himself. Knuckles let out a roar as his singed arm instantly shed its burned skin off like dried dirt, leaving his arm as good as new. He flexed his muscles a few times to make sure.

"Whoaaa… That was cool! _Scary_ but cool…" blurted Marine.

"You should start looking for the Chaos Emeralds immediately," said Knuckles ignoring her. "Wherever Sonic is now, he'll still need you to wish him back to life. But...you can leave Sonic's son with me. I'll be taking him from here."

This was more surprising than Knuckles insta-healing his arm.

"What are you going to do with him?" Rouge asked with concern.

"How powerful that boy becomes depends entirely upon whether or not he receives the proper training," explained Knuckles. "One year from now, two more Mobians will arrive on Earth. When that day comes we'll need him to be ready. There is little time and much to learn. So for the next year he's with me."

"Whoa, you're really serious aren't you?" said Marine now quite afraid.

"A year? Don't you need a parent's permission for that?" Rouge laughed nervously.

"Yeah, a contract or something," added Marine.

"Let's see," thought the Professor. "Sonic's gone but I guess we can ask Amy-"

"Look, I don't have time for this nonsense!" shouted Knuckles. "I'm not _asking_ for your permission. I'm _taking_ the boy with me. By **force** if I have to!"

Immediately Knuckles quickly swiped Tails right out of Rouge's arms before any of them could even blink. The next they thing they knew Knuckles was smirking as he held Tails under his arm.

"Once the year's up and his training is complete, I'll bring him back but not a day before," Knuckles told them. "When you revive Sonic, tell him he can look forward in seeing his son again when we return."

Not wasting another second, Knuckles ascended with Tails and glided away using only one arm! Leaving the others gawking at the sky.

"Whoa! This is bad. Really bad, isn't it?" said Rouge.

"Yeah, I think it is," replied Marine. "If Tails survives, he'll turn out like Knuckles!"

On Angel Island; the floating home of the Master Emerald, Tikal awaited at the Altar of the Emeralds. Her assistant Mr Babylon brought Sonic's body to her now healed of its wounds.

"It is done. What is your plan Tikal?" he asked her.

"Even if Sonic's friends revive him," she began "I fear there's nothing he could possibly do on his own become a match for the new threat. However... His current state presents us with a unique opportunity. If I can spiritually reach him, I may be able to direct Sonic's spirit to Shahra for special training in the Astral Plane. Normally the dimension is only accessible to beings like ourselves but Sonic's current state will grant him the same ability. It will be a treacherous journey but the choice is his to make."

"I see," said Babylon. "But how do you plan to reach his spirit? And if you do send him to the Astral Plane how will he return?"

"By mediating with him in the Chaos pool," Tikal pointed to the mini pond around the Master Emerald. "As long as one's physical body remains there, it acts as a tether back to this world."

"Then I shall watch over both you and the Master Emerald in your absence," replied Babylon.

"Thank you Mr Babylon. Before I can begin the procedure it's vital that I remove all my garments," said Tikal as she started to disrobe.

"Oh," said Babylon nonchalantly. "I suppose I should only watch over the Master Emerald then."

"No, it's fine," Tikal assured. "The world is at stake here and I don't feel any different without them. Now put him in."

"Shouldn't we remove Sonic's attire too? We wouldn't want the Chaos Pool contaminated by it."

"Oh don't worry about that," said Tikal folding her clothes neatly in a corner. "It won't make a difference; the Chaos Pool vaporizes dirt on its own."

"Huh," said Babylon now confused. "Then what is the need for you to undress Tikal?"

"Isn't it obvious?" replied the nude Tikal equally confused. "I don't want my only tribal garb to get wet, it takes forever to dry. Why else?"

There was a pause.

"Just put him in the water…" sighed Tikal.

Meanwhile, Rouge continued flying her friends back to the Kyuuri Estate in their jet. Marine looked at the hat in her lap and became even more anxious then she already was.

"I don't suppose we can get away with not telling Amy about this," the Professor pointed out. "Marine, why don't you go over there and break the bad news? She has a soft spot for you."

"Me?!" yelped Marine. "Why do I have to go?"

"I just hope she's familiar with the phrase _don't kill the messenger,_ " said Rouge sarcastically. Marine swallowed hard.

"I'm kidding," said Rouge realizing her mistake. "It'll be fine Marine, you have to remember we _are_ going to revive Sonic. Just break it to her nice and easy."

"Yeah but how do I explain the part about Tails getting kidnapped again?" questioned Marine.

"…Break it to her nice and easy," said Rouge.

In the spirit realm, Tikal had finally reached Sonic as they both floated in what looked like a solar system and had caught him up to speed.

"So let me get this straight. I finally kicked the bucket during my last battle, you used your mystical powers to reach out to my spirit and now I have the chance to visit this place called the Astral Plane to meet someone called Shahra for special training?" confirmed Sonic.

"Yes, that's correct" said Tikal. "However the journey to Shahra's residence will not be an easy one. To reach it you must transcend an extremely long and dangerous bridge known as _The Special Stage._ Very few have ever made it across. I will not be able to assist you once you've started and should anything happen to you whilst you're there, even the Chaos Emeralds won't be able to bring you back."

"That's horrible…" Sonic shuddered at the thought.

"But although the Special Stage is an unforgiving challenge it is also a rewarding one." Tikal explained. "Should you successfully reach the Astral Plane at the end of the Special Stage, you will have the opportunity to gain powers from Shahra that you could never attain on Earth. Perhaps with those techniques you could defeat the new threat when you are brought back.

Tikal moved closer to Sonic and looked more grievous than he thought possible.

"It is true that the fate of the world is at stake however you must understand that this is an incredibly risky and selfless option," she went on. You have already done so much for us Sonic and that's why I want you to understand this is your choice to make. I could never live with myself knowing I sent you into danger for the sake of others. That's why I want to make a choice free from the thought about others. This is all about you."

Sonic thought hard for a second but knew deep down there was really no other choice.

"It would be everything or nothing," said Sonic. "But if this is my choice then I accept! I've never fought anything like these Mobians before and this could be our only chance to turn the tide. It's better than just waiting to be revived. I'll just have to make sure I don't fail."

"I admire your determination Sonic," smiled Tikal shyly. "I cannot thank you enough. I will warn your friends not to revive you until you've completed your mission. Come I'll take you to the entrance of the Special Stage."

Tikal turned into an Orange Ball of light and spun around Sonic a few times, much to his confusion. There was a flash of light and the next thing Sonic new, he was standing before what looked like an endless half-pipe highway structure that stretched all the way into the distance. It seemed that Sonic and Tikal were in the sky but using the term very loosely. It was like stepping into some strange kaleidoscopic nightmare because as far the eye could see there was all sorts of colors and shapes littered the airspace, the colorful shapes and objects swimming and floating everywhere. Sonic felt there didn't really exist any words to describe it other than _psychedelic_ and that's not a word he used often, if ever.

"Welcome to the Special Stage Sonic," said Tikal bringing him back to reality. "This is the gateway to the Astral Plane. Once you step on it you'll be pretty much exactly as you were on Earth, just without the need to sleep or eat and such."

"And all I have to do is follow it to the very end right?" said Sonic.

"That's right," Tikal replied. "You should find Shahra's residence at the end."

"Hey, what's this Shahra like? You've met him before right?" asked Sonic.

" _Her_ actually," laughed Tikal. "But no, I've only heard stories about her. She was known as Shahra the Ring Genie in days of old. However I guarantee you that she exists, it's just that very few have ever made it to the end of this place."

"I believe you," replied Sonic. "I know this won't be easy but I gotta try. Just how long is Special Stage?"

"According to legend, it is about a million miles from end to end," Tikal said with dismay.

"No problem!" assured Sonic. As long as I'm the same as I was on Earth, I'm still the world's fastest hedgehog! And if a few people have already made it to the end, then I might be able to manage it too."

"Just be careful not to fall off from the bridge," Tikal warned. "Fall in and you can never come back."

"Understood," said Sonic as serious as he could be. "But there's just one more thing."

"Yes?" said Tikal.

"In the worst case scenario I want you and the others to use the wish against the Mobians if reviving me becomes impossible."

"Okay Sonic," said Tikal hugging Sonic farewell. "I'm sorry it has to be you but you're the only one who can possibly do it. Good luck."

"It'll be fine, I promise!" said Sonic. "See you soon! And say hi to Mr Babylon for me."

With that Sonic revved up on the spot and dashed forwards onto the Special Stage surface. Using his natural Sonic speed he sped off towards his destination.

"Have a safe journey!" Tikal called out to him. "This will be a most challenging year for you."

With her connection fading, Tikal concentrated her powers to bring herself back to her physical body. She regained consciousness back in the Chaos Pool as if it was all some vivid dream but she knew better. Next to her Sonic's body was glowed white every few seconds as if he wasn't dead but just in under some strange sleeping curse. Tikal contemplated her navel lost in thoughts.

"The Earth has drawn the attention of some of the most despicable beings in the universe has to offer. If something has to be done soon we could find ourselves in a lot of trouble" she thought.

Tikal got up and walked towards the Master Emerald.

"What could we do? We could try to wish our enemies away. But even the Dragon Chaos might be powerless against their tremendous strength."

She then looked back at her blue friend.

"Sonic is the greatest warrior the Earth has ever know yet to these Mobians he is nothing more than an inconvenience. But I wonder if Shahra's instructions will even help. Until Sonic returns, Tails is our best hope. He is young though. And there is so little time."

Suddenly there was a cold breeze and Tikal came to a conclusion and hugged herself.

"I should put my clothes back on…" she shivered.

Back on Earth, Marine slowly walked towards Amy's door trying to calm her nerves.

"I'm sorry ma'am," she began. "But, your husband Sonic is dead. Sorry."

Having said that Marine then politely bowed.

"Not bad, but it _might_ be a little blunt," she said to herself.

Marine decided to practice some more knowing what Amy was like.

"I'm sorry, but I have terrible news. I-I hate to have to tell you this but Sonic is gone to his eternal rest…"

Nope too poetic thought Marine.

"Then again, he _is_ coming back to life," she pondered. "That's it! Say it with a smile. Sonic is dead. But he is coming back to life pretty soon so you don't have to worry about it ok?" she chuckled nervously realizing how stupid that sounded.

With no warning the door opened and Amy popped her head out.

"Hi Marine," greeted Amy.

Marine quickly pulled herself together or at least tried to, the best she could.

"Amy!?" she squawked. "Hi-isn't-it-a-lovely-afternoon?"

"I thought I heard someone mumbling to themselves. What's wrong?" she asked.

"Wrong!? Why-would-anything-be-wrong!? Well, _something_ is but it will be fine soon!" Marine couldn't control herself as the words tumbled out of her.

Amy just blinked in confusion. From behind her the Commander appeared to see what was going on.

"Greetings Marine, how are you?" he asked.

"Yes sir." Marine responded. "I'm okay. Thank you. It's nice of you to ask."

"I figured you'd be with Sonic." Amy said. "Everyone alright?"

"See. About that..." Marine mumbled. "Thing is, Sonic's kinda de-de-de-"

"What?" said Amy, not understanding Marine's strange behaviour.

"Sonic's well uh…"

"Uh?" the Commander inquired.

"Go on," Amy insisted.

With both of them staring at her Marine just couldn't bring herself to say it but it was too late to back out now.

"D-D…Don't worry about me! He says! He's fine!" laughed Marine.

"He's fine?" Amy repeated not understanding what all the fuss was about. "Really? He's going to be late, right?"

"He sure is. That's it." Marine gulped. "But actually, he won't be coming back-"

"Sonic said he isn't coming back!?" Amy interjected with concern.

"No..but yes! He… will be coming back real soon," Marine tried to find the words.

"Well, is Sonic coming home or not? Start making sense!" she demanded.

"Wha…" Marine really anxious now.

The Commander took a step forward trying to keep the peace.

"Now now everyone," he said. "Perhaps we should slow down and discuss this inside. Is that okay Amy?"

"Yeah, I guess you're right," agreed Amy. "Come on in Marine and tell me what's going on."

In the midst of Dinosaur Jungle, Knuckles decided he had travelled enough and came to a landing in front of a miniature lagoon. He held Tails up by his scruff and tried to wake him.

"Alright," said Knuckles. "I've let you rest long enough kid, now wake up, it's time to start your training."

He turned Tails around to face him and noticed Tails was actually asleep and snoring. Knuckles squinted his eyes looking most unimpressed and then just threw Tails face first in to the water. That got his attention! Within seconds Tails sprang to life and started splashing about, in desperate need of air. He soon sat upright and coughing and hacking.

"We have to talk. Get out of the water." Knuckles instructed him.

Tails glanced behind him to see his father's arch-rival Knuckles, which sent him into a panic.

"You're not my daddy…" he said whilst frantically looking left and right for Sonic. "Where are you daddy?

Knuckles watched as Tails hysterically started running in circles.

"Daddy! Daddy, come here I'm scared! Daddy!" he cried but with no luck he just stopped where was and burst into tears. "Daaaaaaddy! Where are you?"

Knuckles was disgusted with such a pathetic display from the same individual who was crucial in their fight against Mighty.

"You spoilt little brat," Knuckles grumbled as he approached him.

"We don't have time for this!" he shouted as he picked the still crying Tails out of the water. "Shut up! Quit your whining! Or I'll give you a REAL reason to cry…"

Knuckles clenched his fist and that seemed to coax Tails into co operating as he quickly stopped bawling and sniffed himself quiet.

"Now listen up," Knuckles addressed him. "I'm only going to say this _once_. First: Your daddy didn't make it. You remember some of what happened, don't you? In order to defeat the man who took you, your father sacrificed himself."

The color drained from Tails' face as it all came back to him, Sonic restraining Mighty, Knuckles blasting his attack, his friends crying in anguish. He had brushed it all off as a bad dream...

"No…He can't be!" began Tails, beginning to have another breakdown.

"STOP!" Knuckles rushed forwards. "Stop it right now! I already warned you what would happen if you cried again!"

It took everything Tails had to bite back the urge to cry but he complied. Knuckles grinned in satisfaction.

"Now I'm sure your father already told you about the Chaos Emeralds at some point," Knuckles continued. "His friends are currently trying to gather all seven in the hopes of bringing him back to life. However, that is _their_ mission, not ours. Your father and I were able to defeat the man who kidnapped you. But before he died he alerted two other Mobians who'll reach earth in one year. And we have reason to believe they're even stronger than he was. If that's true, even Sonic can't stop them. Not even if I were to help. But if you can be trained your strength can give the edge we need."

"But, I don't…I couldn't," Tails stuttered. "I'm too little. I don't even know how to fight-"

"That's enough," Knuckles cut him off. "I can see that you're blind to your potential. That you may not believe it, you are incredibly strong. But you're still in need of training. And so, it's my job to help you find that strength."

"But I can't!" whined Tails. "I'm not as strong as you think…"

Knuckles found this amusing.

"You want me to prove it? Okay," he said without waiting for a reply.

Knuckles picked him up by his head and Tails started to panic. Knuckles looked towards a rocky hill in the distance and then with all his might, flung Tails right towards it. Tails just kept screaming as he flew through the air.

"Do it," Knuckles mentally instructed. "Release your power! Let's see what you've got."

As predicted, Tails snapped again and became unusually violent. He spread forward both arms and spun his tails really fast, producing a brilliant white aura. As he approached the hill, it automatically shot an energy blast forwards causing it to explode.

Knuckles shielded his eyes from all the dust produced. When he opened his eyes again he the rocky hill was no more and in its place was a perfectly round crater that stretched for at least a few miles. Tails sat at its end.

"What the…how did he…?" said Knuckles now quite grim. "Unbelievable! He's more powerful than I could have ever imagined!"

Knuckles reproached Tails solemnly, with this newfound revelation.

"I'm not sure how I feel about this," he thought to himself. "To think I'm about to train the child who's likely to become my greatest adversary. I must be losing my mind."

"W-wait, I didn't do that, did I?" muttered Tails.

"That's right," affirmed Knuckles. "It's time you realized your power. It appears your strength is closely linked to your emotions. You can't maintain it, which is very inconvenient. We'll never defeat the Mobians unless we correct that. And of course we will."

"Huh?" Tails wondered what he meant by that.

"We're going to turn you into the greatest warrior this world has ever known. Got that?" stressed Knuckles.

"Yes sir," Tails replied. "It's just… I don't want to learn how to fight. 'Cause I wanna study hard and be a scholar."

"Hmph, maybe you will," said Knuckles finding the concept humorous. "But you'll have plenty of time for scholarly things once we're done defeating the Mobians. We only have a year to prepare you to defend the planet with us. You don't want everyone on earth to die, do you?"

"No but I'm scared…" said Tails feebly.

"Stop your whining!" growled Knuckles. "Unless you want me to kill you right now!"

Tails gasped and fell backwards in fear.

"We don't have time for this!" Knuckles asserted. "Like it or not, this is the path destiny has chosen for you and you ARE going to help us!"

That seemed to get the message across, so Knuckles eased off a little.

"Your training begins right now. You can start by taking off that ridiculous tunic," Knuckles instructed.

"Fine, I'll do it," said Tails whilst getting up. "But just until daddy is back. Then I want him to teach me to fight instead of you."

"Ha! That's too bad," scoffed Knuckles. "Your dad may be powerful, but I doubt he'll be an effective teacher. He doesn't have any gift for commanding respect. Which is why his son turned out to be such a snot nosed brat..."

On the Special Stage, Sonic was running out of breath as he sped along its path.

"Whoa, I'm actually starting to run out of breath. I guess I better take a break soon," Sonic said to himself.

Sonic looked forwards to see some sort of light blue liquid seeping into the path way.

"Woah! Is that water!? Not cool, I never learned how to swim!" Sonic tried skidding to a halt but only ended up slipping forwards right into it. As he fell on his rear, he felt the liquid path pushing him forwards.

"Hey! This isn't so baaaaaaaaad!" Sonic trailed off as the path had now become a slippery wavy path that dipped downwards and upwards with the liquids carrying him across it.

"This is one crazy ride," said Sonic. "But I might as well make the most of it!"

 _And so, as his son prepares to face Knuckles' rigorous training back on Earth; Sonic has begun his own perilous journey to reach the end of Special Stage. The race is on! What will happen now?_

 _Find out next time!_

* * *

 **And another chapter complete... Better go work on the next one.**


	5. A Moonlit Night Awakens Tails!

****_Insert lame joke here_ because the n**ext chapter is here, yay.**

* * *

The wind began to blow in the depths of Dinosaur Jungle and Tails was already starting to feel cold without his tunic but he didn't dare complain; especially after Knuckles' earlier warning. He carefully folded his tunic and then neatly placed it on the ground next to him. How typical of the gentle and polite Tails, thought Knuckles.

"So…what now?" asked Tails timidly. "Uh, I mean…How do…I train?"

"For _now_ ," grinned Knuckles. "You don't have to do anything. Just _survive_."

"Survive?" Tails repeated anxiously .

"After six months," explained Knuckles. " _ **If**_ you've managed to stay alive, I'll teach you how to fight."

The wind speed picked up even more, as Tails took this idea on board...or at least _tried_ to.

"Y-You're leaving me?! You can't!" he said with alarm. "I can't stay out here all by myself all alone!"

"Don't worry, you won't be by yourself," Knuckles chuckled. "No, you'll have plenty of hungry wild animals to keep you company."

Sarcastic or not, Tails knew Knuckles was dead serious.

"Whaaa, you mean like…lions and tigers?" he whimpered, on the verge of tears. "But they'll eat me!"

"Quiet!" demanded Knuckles. "No more whining! It's time to start acting like a **man**. Understand!?"

"But…what do I do?" complained Tails.

"Whatever it takes to stay alive for six months," answered Knuckles. "If you can find a way to do that, then at the end... You'll be a stronger fighter; both in body and in mind."

As Knuckles spoke, Tails was only getting more and more frightened, it took all his might just to fight the urge to cry again.

"Remember this, there's a great power inside you just waiting to be unlocked. But it's up to _you_ to bring it out. Use it! Believe in your ability! If you want to survive, you'll need to learn how to summon your powers whenever you need them."

"But...what if I...can't?" Tails whimpered.

"Heh," Knuckles just walked away and Tails put the pieces together.

"Wait!" Tails called after him. "What am I supposed to eat? I don't have any food! Or water! Or a bath! Or a bed! Or anything!

"I guess that's something you're just gonna have to figure out," replied Knuckles. "I never said this would be easy. This is the path that fate has chosen for you. The sooner you accept it, the better."

Not wasting any more time, Knuckles soared into the sky and glided away, leaving the frantic Tails behind.

"Waaaait! Stop! Don't go!" Tails begged as he darted after him. "You can't leave me here! Come back! I don't know what to do all by myself!

Tails ran as fast as he could but it wasn't enough to keep up with Knuckles' superior speed. Before long he was out of Tails' sight, leaving him completely alone in the wilderness. Tails couldn't hold back anymore and just burst into tears on the spot.

Far away on Angel Island, Tikal sensed a great disturbance that she couldn't quite comprehend. Mr Babylon had never seen her so troubled.

"Tikal, what is it? Is something troubling you?" he asked her with concern.

"It's Knuckles," she blinked. "I can still feel the evil in his heart. And yet...there seems to be a change coming over him, Mr. Babylon…He's not acting like the villain I would expect."

"Ah it is odd," agreed Mr Babylon. "Warlord Pachacamac would never have been willing to train Sonic's son."

"Yes," Tikal said. "I found it equally surprising when Knuckles agreed to forge an alliance with Sonic in order to defeat Mighty. I realize he had his own selfish motives for doing so but still...it does not change the fact that he chose to defend the Earth..."

Mr Babylon nodded in agreement as Tikal continued.

"And though it may seem Knuckle's true evil nature revealed itself when he eliminated Sonic along with Mighty...We must not forget, that Sonic chose to make that sacrifice. Not only that, but he can still be revived with the Chaos Emeralds. Knuckles knows that Sonic is certain to return and yet he has still chosen to train his son: a boy that may one day grow to be a powerful enemy in his own right…"

"When you put it _that_ way, it doesn't make sense..." stated Mr Babylon.

"Perhaps it does Mr Babylon," said Tikal. "Perhaps it _does_ … Knuckles may have realized as I have, that in one year, we will die."

Mr Babylon's pupils constricted as he heard this revelation.

"No…Tikal..." he began.

"I'm sorry Mr Babylon," calmly lamented Tikal. "I have foreseen it… I do not know the exact cause of our passing. Whether Knuckles will lose his life to the Mobians, or if some crisis shall befall me…but the results are all the same. My life force is forever bound with Knuckles: we are two halves of the same being. One cannot exist without the other..."

Mr Babylon felt a wave of sadness flush over him. He was never the most emotive individual, but he always felt protective of Tikal as her assistant. It was true that Tikal was the stronger and wiser of the two but she was the closet thing to family he ever had. Like a big sister. The thought of her death was heart-wrenching but Tikal remained optimistic and chuckled to herself.

"You might say, it's the curse of foresight," she began. "Seeing the day, of my own demise. If Knuckles has sensed my mind. He may wish to pass his knowledge on before he dies. Even, if it's to the son of his own enemy."

"But what about the Chaos Emeralds?" inquired Mr Babylon.

"They will vanish along with me," said Tikal solemnly. "But there is time for one more wish."

Meanwhile in another dimension, Sonic continued his journey transversing the Special Stage.

"Wow, I had no idea Tails was so strong!" he thought. "What he did against Mighty today was amazing! I guess he's a chip of the old block after all!"

As Sonic continued his journey he noticed the smooth, perfectly round rails on both sides of the highway.

"Huh, wait a sec!" said Sonic. "This gives me an idea!"

Sonic hopped on the rails, steadied himself with his heels and begun grinding his way across through the Special Stage. This method required much less effort.

"I should've done this from the start!" he laughed.

But before long another huge dip in the road occurred, speeding Sonic up and then throwing him off during the way up towards the swirling abyss below. Sonic panicked but quickly used his _Homing Attack_ manoeuvre to just barely get back to the path. Panting with fear Sonic made a mental note to not try that again.

"That was too close for comfort. Maybe running isn't so bad after all..."

Back in Dinosaur Jungle, Tails sat sobbing in his arms on a small flat boulder when he heard some really loud footsteps. Tails looked up to see a giant Tyrannosaurs-Rex not too far ahead in front of him. The T-Rex was clearly eying him as a potential meal.

Tails took a moment to process what was happening and then bolted with lightning speed screaming as he ran. The gargantuan reptile rampaged after him in pursuit, crushing the boulder to pebbles in a single step. With larger legs it wasn't hard for the Tyranno to catch up to him as it thrust its jaws forwards to gobble Tails up in one bite.

"Help me! Please! Ah! Somebody help!" he yelled, spinning his tails to gain more speed.

But nobody seemed to hear him and in his desperation Tails tripped over, straight on to the ground, cornered against a massive rock formation, with nowhere to run to. Instantly the T-Rex was upon him! It chomped its massive jaws towards him and without even knowing it, Tails' instincts kicked in again; causing him to subconsciously ascend skywards with his two tails.

The T-Rex chewed its mouthful but it soon realized it had bitten nothing but rocks and dirt! Angered at the loss of a meal, it roared and continued searching the area for the fox boy who had vanished without a trace.

Tails opened his eyes to see that he was still alive and there was no sign of the T-Rex. However looking over the edge of his area, Tails saw that he was now he was stuck on a really high rock formation! How did he even get up there? He noticed the dinosaur still searching for him at its base. What was he going to do now? Even if the T-Rex left, it was way too high for him to jump down! The wind start to blow again and Tails found himself more alone than ever.

"Aaaah! Now I'm stuck! Help! Somebody! I can't get down!" he cried out loud to no avail.

At the Kyuuri Estate, Marine had returned from her short visit to Amy's house with no luck. And by _returned_ Marine meant _snuck away when Amy wasn't looking._

"What? You didn't tell her?" exclaimed Professor Pickle.

"I'm sorry, I just couldn't…" apologized Marine. "I was gonna, but…you know, it just…oh..."

"You mean, none of it?" said Rouge sternly.

"Right..." Marine admitted.

"You're hopeless, you know that?" Rouge complained. "All you had to do was blurt it out, it's not hard."

"Sure, it's easy for you to say..." complained Marine. "Try looking at Amy in the face...then you tell her _Sonic's dead_. It's impossible!"

Rouge sighed whilst holding her forehead.

"There there, Marine. I understand your hesitance," said the Professor.

"But we can't… _not_ tell her..." Rouge reminded them.

"Yes I know," said the Professor. "So how about this? We'll write a letter to Amy instead."

"You mean I'm off the hook!?" beamed Marine. "That's a great idea!"

"Okay, so what about the Chaos Emeralds?" asked Rouge. "The two at Sonic's place? Tell me you still managed to pick them up, at least…"

"Uh yeah, about that…" began Marine tapping her index fingers together.

"Totally hopeless," Rouge sighed.

Night time had fallen and by this point Tails had given up all hope of getting down from the rock formation. He didn't even have the energy to cry anymore after doing it for so long. Lying miserably on the cold hard floor, he tightly wrapped his two-tails around his body to keep warm though it hardly helped.

"I'm hungry…" he continued complaining, having nothing better to do. "And cold...and tired…and scared..."

A large gust of wind blew across his face prompting Tails to look up. Before him he saw two huge crisp and juicy red apples on the grass. Desperate with hunger, Tails quickly scrambled towards them and picked one up.

"Wow, apples..." said Tails overjoyed. "Guess they must've fallen here, I'm saved!"

Tails was about to bite into one of them when suddenly it occurred to him that there were no fruit bearing trees around him anywhere, just bushes and such. Was someone watching over him? There was no sign of Mr Knuckles anywhere.

"Oh well..." said Tails deciding to eat first and ask questions later.

He greedily starting chomping into one of them, only to immediately stop and reluctantly swallow what he had bitten.

"These things…are sour!" he whined. "Ugh, that's gross...I miss my Mom's cooking! I wanna eat a real dinner!"

Knuckles had been discreetly keeping an eye on Tails and was incredibly peeved when Tails started to whine again.

"Oh, come on! He's lucky he even got that," he grumbled.

Nevertheless, Tails was so hungry he found himself eating both apples to the core, sour or otherwise. When he was done, he approached the edge of the rock formation in the hopes of finding an escape but just one glance at his elevation level was enough to make him back away. Tails just curled up on the ground once more and tried to get some rest. Observing from afar, Knuckles was less than pleased.

"I hope you enjoyed it kid, that's the one and only time I intend to help you," muttered Knuckles. "If you can't survive on your own after this, then it means I was wrong about you. And you're just a normal little brat…"

Tails had exhausted himself to the brink and fell asleep quite quickly. Knuckles decided to get some shut eye as well, planning to return before dawn. The hours ticked away until the morning sun's rays pierced through the sky and finally awoke Tails.

"Ah! That's bright!" he cringed, as the light shone in his eyes.

Tails got up, rubbed his eyes and scratched his head with his two-tails... and then it _dawned_ upon him that he was still stuck up there.

"What am I gonna do?" Tails threw a tantrum. "I'm stuck up here! Oh, I'm never gonna get down! And I'm still starving!"

"Believe me. When his stomach rumbles loud enough, he's gonna find a way down." Knuckles assured himself.

Elsewhere, Amy was furious with Sonic's unexplained absence. Deciding she'd had enough of waiting for him (as well as Marine's strange behavior), she'd jumped into her _Pink Cabriolet_ and sped off towards the Kyuuri estate. It helped that she had installed a hover mode for her car letting her cut through the ocean water… She'd even dragged poor Commander Tower along with her!

"He kept Tails out all night…" she ranted to the Commander. "And didn't even bother calling once!"

"Uh, it's been so long since he's seen all of his friends," replied Tower, trying to calm her down. "He probably just lost track of time, you know? Then decided to spend the night with Professor Pickle."

"Well, that's still just poor parenting! Tails has his schoolwork to think about!" Amy grumbled.

"Come now, missing one day's not that big of a deal, is it?" said the Commander.

"Yeah, but where does it stop!?" continued Amy. "First it's just a single day, then the next thing you know, my son's a total slacker!"

And with that Amy kicked the car into overdrive and it went even faster, spraying a huge trail of water behind her. The Commander couldn't believe what he had gotten himself into.

At the Kyuuri Estate, the Professor had stayed up working all night but it had paid off as he'd finally completed adjusting the Scouter. With a sigh of victory, he put it on his head and went to fetch Rouge and Marine in the living quarters.

"Pardon me ladies," he said, walking into the room. "But I think I've finally done it!"

"Done what?" yawned Rouge, sprawled out on the luxurious Chaise Lounge sofa. "Oh I see! That great Profess-"

Rouge looked down in horror to find Marine snuggled fast asleep on top of her. Before Rouge could say anything Marine had comfortably nestled her head on Rouge's cleavage. Rouge tried to wriggle her off but this caused Marine to subconsciously grab hold of them.

"Mmm, I don't know what kind of pillow this is but it sure feels soft!" Marine dreamily mumbled in her sleep.

Furious now, Rouge kicked her across the room launching her crashing into a bird cage. Marine caterwauled in pain and the Professor just stood there unsure of what to do next.

"Owowowow! Where am I? Why can I see birds flying around me? Oh it's just you Flicky."

Flicky had also been woken with a fright and in her confusion flew circles around Marine before flying away into the next room.

"Marine... **Never**. Do that again," threatened Rouge.

"Do what? What's going on?" said Marine clutching her head.

"Everyone, please focus! I stayed up all night working on this and I need your help now," said the Professor now most exasperated.

"Sorry Professor," apologized Rouge.

"Yeah, what do you want us to do?" asked Marine.

"Please stand up and stay still," said the Professor, as he Scanned Rouge. "I deciphered and modified the characters in the display to make them legible. Aha! **139**."

" **139**?" repeated Rouge. "What exactly does that mean?"

"It's an indication of your strength," said the Professor. "Your _power level_ I believe."

"Wow, that's quite an amazing device. So **139** eh? That sounds tough to beat," smirked Rouge.

"Okay okay, c'mon, my turn!" excitedly requested Marine. "What's my number, Professor?"

Professor Pickle tapped the Scouter again and scanned Marine who struck a confident pose.

"How 'bout that? It's at **206**!" said the Professor.

"Hey! That means I'm stronger than you! Ha ha," laughed Marine.

Rouge restrained herself from exploding in frustration again and the Scouter reacted to this, with the numbers skyrocketing.

"Easy there Rouge, your power level just shot up to **209**!" the Professor pointed out.

"Huh? It _has_?" said Rouge with surprise. "Are you sure you fixed it?"

"Not to brag but I am an expert at this stuff," replied the Professor.

"He-y-y-y-y-y!" a deep voice called from outside. "Hey!"

Marine went over and opened the door to see who it was. Before her, stood a large obese dark purple cat, carrying a fishing rod/katana rolled in one on his shoulder.

"Yeah, _hey_ yourself," criticized Marine. "Who are you? You ever heard of knockin'?"

"Shut up," he bluntly responded.

"Huh? Oh yeah, I remember you. You're, um, eh…uh…" Marine trailed off. "What's your name again?"

"It's _Big the Cat_!" he shouted. "You know that! Now quit askin' stupid questions!"

Professor Pickle and Rouge arrived to see what all the hubbub was about.

"Listen," explained Big. "Omochao told me to tell you to come to the Angel Isalnd for special training."

"Wait, as in _the_ Omochao?" inquired Marine.

Big made a robotic expression.

"Hi! I'm Omochao! I am here to help you!" said Big returning to normal. "He told me call the raccoon girl. And he wants you to bring along Espio the Chameleon. And Croco-somebody… And uh, Charm-whatever..."

"Oh... You mean Vector the Crocodile and Charmy Bee, right?" Marine affirmed.

"What about me?" asked Rouge.

"Did I _say_ you?" grunted Big.

"Never mind Rouge, I need your help here," assured Professor Pickle.

"Just get over to his house on Angel Island and stuff...I'm training with you, too."

"What? Really?" exclaimed Marine.

"Yeah, crazy huh?" admitted Big. "I told Omochao _there's no way I'm fightin' any stupid aliens_ and he went through the roof! I thought he was gonna kill me. He's serious."

"Wow, it uh…sounds like we don't have a choice," mumbled Marine.

"You don't, or at least I didn't… But I don't care. Do whatever you want!" said Big walking away, only to quickly turn back. "Oh wait, I almost forgot. Don't wish Sonic back to life with the Chaos Emeralds until the Mobians arrive one year from now!"

"What? Bu-But why?" demanded Rouge.

"Beats me," replied Big. "Somethin' about _special training in the Other World_ or somethin' like that. Tikal will send someone over later to tell you the rest so just ask them. Later losers!"

Big jumped inside the a mini plane he could barely squeeze into and flew off into the sky.

"Wait! You haven't answered all out questions!" the Professor stated but Big was long gone.

"So...what's Sonic doing again?" asked Marine.

"No idea..." replied Rouge.

The trio collectively saw a vehicle approaching from the horizon.

"Hey, uh..." Marine pointed. "I think he might be coming back."

Upon closer inspection, it was actually Amy Rose and Commander Tower! By the looks of things Amy was furious.

"Oh no…It's Amy!" exclaimed Rouge. "And she's brought the Commander along!"

"This is bad, right?" said a nervous Marine. "What do we do? Professor?"

"Well…" he lamented. "I suppose it's too late to write that letter..."

"Greetings everybody," said the Commander. "Ah Professor Pickle. It's good to see you again. I hope you're doing okay.

"Um yes, quite right" Professor Pickle replied.

"Alright, where are they?" demanded Amy, putting her hands on her hips "I know they're here somewhere… Start talking!"

"Well uh..." said the Professor scratching his head. "They're a... it's like this..."

"Huh?" said Amy and the Commander collectively.

Professor Pickle tried his best to explain. About the arrival of Sonic's half brother; Knuckles deciding to assist them and about Sonic sacrificing his life to save them. And about Tails getting kidnapped twice. The last part definitely made Amy hysterical.

"You guys let that Knuckle-head take my son!?" shrieked Amy.

"And you're saying Sonic had to…I mean he's…" the Commander couldn't quite believe it.

"He's... kinda dead," said Marine nervously.

"Sonic is…" Amy couldn't bring herself to say it, collapsing to her knees, a single tear falling from her eye.

Another day had passed and Tails was still stuck on top of the rock formation. Knuckles had even fallen asleep waiting for him to come down. The wind was blowing and Tails dared to take another peek downwards waking Knuckles up. However Tails was still too scared to climb down.

"This is stupid," said Tails. "I don't even know how I got up here... Hmm? Why do I still have a shadow when it's night time?"

Tails looked up to the sky to see the full moon shining brightly amongst the stars,.

"Wow...," he marvelled. "That's the biggest moon ever! It's so bright! It must be a full moon! I've never seen one of those befo..."

Something had snapped, or at least seemed like it had. Even Knuckles felt as such but couldn't see anything unusual in the area. He then noticed Tails gawking at the full moon with his mouth open as if he was in some hypnotic trance, his two-tails flailing erratically all the while.

"Huh, what the…?" Knuckles muttered.

The moonlight. It was…delicious. Was that even the right word to use? Whatever the moon was doing to Tails, it felt liberating. His Lunar-Crystal seemed to be absorbing the light rays straight into him. Tails tried to cry out but the sounds were caught in his throat. His body was twitching, fixated to the spot and his heart was racing a mile a minute. He felt itchy all over but the itch felt like it was _under_ his skin. Something on the inside was clawing its way out, demanding to be released. And Tails was powerless to resist it.

Tails felt sharp spasms all over his body and yowling sounds filled his ears; getting louder and louder. Tails gritted his teeth, realizing that they along with the rest of him were growing bigger by the second. The pain rippled through his body forcing him down on all fours legs like a mutt. His forepaws tore right through his gloves and his claws curled themselves into the soft dirt. At the same time his hind paws ballooned larger and larger until they finally burst through his shoes. Tails struggles to endure the incredible pain settling into his bones as his body restructures itself; his new size shreds any remaining cloth right off him. Pure white light dances before his eyes before he completely let go. The newly emerged were-fox howled into the sky.

Knuckles couldn't believe what he was witnessing. Suddenly the fox-boy had grown into a were-beast? How did that happen? Before he could contemplate it any further, Were-Tails brought his now extremely stretchy but incredibly strong fists downwards smashing right through the rock formation and reducing it to rubble. Landing neatly on the ground on all fours, he roared as he went on a destructive rampage attacking whatever came in his way. Trees, boulders, the ground itself…Were-Tails just wildly attacked them with his long arms with relative ease. Before long he learned how to fire energy blasts by growling! Explosions went off every where around him.

"If he keeps this up, the Earth will be destroyed before the Mobians even get here!" exclaimed Knuckles. "But how do I stop him!?"

Knuckles thought back to the time he was eavesdropping on Sonic from the roof of the Kyuuri Estate. Mighty's words rang clearly in Knuckles head.

" _You must know! You've lived on this planet your entire life! The full moon is key to unlocking a Mobian's true potential!"_

"That's it! The full moon! They need the moon!" he realized, dodging one of Tails' energy blasts.

Knuckles knew formulated a plan. It wasn't a full proof plan but it's the only one he could think off during the crisis. Positioning himself on a high platform, he concentrated his energy, drawing power from his link to the Master Emerald. This attack would not be nearly as powerful as the _Maximum Heat Knuckle,_ however it would take only a fraction of the time to charge up and would travel infinitely further. Once he had charged up as much as he possibly could Knuckles aimed for the moon.

" _Volcanic Emerald Blast!"_

Knuckles fired a single ball of concentrated energy that flew towards the moon at near light speed. When it reached the surface of the moon, it continued its journey even further. It pierced through the surface and continued until reached the core. Moments later an ethereal green aura surrounded the moons surface. Before long, Knuckle's attack set off a chain reaction detonating the core, thus shattering the moon in the process. Knuckles unleashed the attack in such a way that the resulting debris wouldn't escape the moon's atmosphere. The explosion burned brightly with a green glow until all that remained was lunar dust.

Knuckles sat down panting, as such a precise, calculated and large scale maneuver drained a lot of his stamina. The explosion caught the attention of Were-tails who upon staring the moon dust cloud, felt strange again. His body went limp as he began reverting back rather quickly; his body compressing itself back to what it once was. Tails little rampage had depleted all of his strength and he fell to the ground, sound asleep. Catching his breath again, Knuckles slowly approached the sleeping Tails.

"So, that's the secret of the Mobians' power," he mused. "It's that crystal of theirs. Somehow it gives them the ability to transform at the sight of a full moon. "If that's the case, it's probably for the best that I destroyed it..."

Knuckles' looked towards the remains of the moon in the sky then back to all the destruction Were-Tails had caused.

"It may cause a few adverse weather problems but that's a small price to pay. We can always wish it back later. If a child did this much damage, I hate to think what the other two Mobians would have done when they arrived… But now, without the moon, they won't be able to transform and we'll be on a more level playing field."

Knuckles turned his attention to the sleeping Tails.

"In fact we have an advantage now," he continued. "Because we know that their crystals are a weak point. Which means right now, the kid's crystal is only a liability"

Knuckles grabbed Tails' Lunar Crystal and crushed it with his fist into dust. A shiny surface remained where it once was but nothing that could be latched on to.

"Now I suppose you'll need some new clothes. Maybe a weapon. I suppose I could at least provide you with that much," said Knuckles gliding off.

Soon after, he returned with an outfit and a sword and placed them next to the sleeping Tails.

"There. The clothes are like your father's but the symbol shows you're from my clan," said Knuckles in satisfaction.

With time running out Knuckles decided he'd have to leave now.

"That's it," he told the sleeping Tails. "I've already done more for you than I intended. I don't have time to baby-sit you any longer. I have my own training to do. If you can survive out here for six months on your own, you'll see me again... And then you'll see what you're made of when your real training begins. Because once you learn what I have in store for you...I promise, you're going to wish that you hadn't survived!"

 _Knuckles briefly laughed before gliding off into the night._

 _The Earth's fighters are one step closer to being prepared for the Mobians' arrival. But for son and father alike; a long, hard road still lies ahead! The story continues…_

 _Next Sonic Chaos Z!_

* * *

 ** _Words words words..._**

 ** _I'm surprised that it was easier to destroy the moon then it was to defeat Mighty. Still at least I acknowledged the weather problems._**


	6. End of the road! Shahra's bizarre test!

**Apologies that this one is slightly shorter than usual but on the plus side it means you'll get the next one even sooner.**

* * *

 _Six months had passed since that fateful day Mighty arrived on Earth._

Dawn had broken over the horizon in Dinosaur Jungle. The morning sun shone it's light over the land, as the jungle's wildlife began to emerge from their nests. Tails was sleeping besides a tree, when the sounds of birds chirping roused him from his slumber. He extended his arms in the air, letting out a huge yawn. His clothes were scuffed and caked with dirt after spending so much time in the wilderness. A rumbling sound was heard.

"Food," thought Tails, agreeing with his stomach.

Picking up half of a discarded coconut shell, Tails jumped down the hill where he made his camp. After six months of intense survival, Tails had finally conquered his fear of heights and had no problem descending downwards. Tails continued his search until he found what he was looking for. Spin-dashing in place, he revved up and struck a nearby tree, making it rain down it's precious little fruits. Using his coconut shell as a plate Tails gratefully caught as many as he could before settling down on a tree stump to eat his breakfast.

As he sat enjoying his meal, a huge shadow loomed over him. It was old "friend" the Tyrannosaurus Rex… The saurian stood before him, its mouth salivating, looking forward to gobbling him up. But this time Tails was completely unfazed! The time he'd spent in the jungle had transformed him.

"Oh hi," said Tails with his mouth full. "It's you again. You back for more huh?"

The T-Rex didn't waste any more time and lunged its head towards him but Tails simply back flipped out of the way. The T-Rex ended up chomping into the stump which only irritated it even further. Tails ran off with the dino in hot pursuit but Tails was not the least bit scared! Spinning his two-tails together for more speed eluded capture from each of the T-Rex's bites.

"You missed me! Hehehehehe!" Tails taunted it whilst running away.

The T-Rex ignored everything around it, focusing every fiber of its attention on chomping into the little fox boy… which was exactly what Tails had been hoping for. Tails deliberately dropped his speed so the T-Rex would bite again and the oversized lizard fell straight for the trick. At the last second Tails jumped high into the air causing the T-Rex to smash it's cranium into the massive boulder in front of it. While he was still in the air, Tails unsheathed his sword and incorporated it into his spin-jump attack. The T-Rex got up disorientated and Tails sliced his blade downwards from its skull to the end of its tail, finally putting it out of its misery.

Tails created a campfire using some fallen timber and cooked some meat he'd scavenged from the reptile. Hiding in the depths of a tall tree, Knuckles observed Tails' feat.

"Good," said Knuckles, most amused. "He's improving faster than I thought."

Back in the dimension of the Special Stage, time moved a lot slower therefore from Sonic's perspective it had only been a few weeks. Either ways, the journey across Special Stage was by no means easy. Though he showed no signs of wear or tear, Sonic was mentally exhausted.

"Phew," he gasped. "How much further is it to Shahra's residence!? Oh, I was sure I'd be able to see the end by now! Oh man…"

Sonic continued running, his desire to protect his family and friends giving him the strength to continue.

On Angel Island, the warriors Tikal summoned had finally arrived. Earths greatest warriors: Marine the Racoon, Espio the Chameleon, Vector the Crocodile, Charmy Bee and Big the Cat (okay, maybe not Big) had all gathered together to train for the impending Mobian invasion. Each of them had met Sonic during his travels in the old days and after hearing about Sonic's noble sacrifice, were more than happy to help him take a stand.

Together they seemed like a "ragtag group of misfits." Whereas his rival Vector was reclusive yet disciplined, Espio was boastful but dependable. Charmy was Vector's closest ally but he was tiny in comparison to his peers. Marine was the most immature and the only girl of the group and definitely felt out of place. As for Big? Well, he was the friend that nobody really liked and was drafted into the team. Nevertheless together, they formed the World's Strongest Team! If anyone on Earth stood a ghost of a chance against these Mobians, it was them.

While they had gone separate ways, Vector retreated to _Isolated Island_ to train alone and Charmy decided to tag along with him. Together they'd been earning their living as Bounty Hunters bringing criminals in. Meanwhile, accompanied by his pet Chao, Espio had been working as a professional baseball player, his superior skills made his team unbeatable and he was paid a hefty sum for his contribution. However Espio felt didn't feel content at all, believing his skills as a ninja were being wasted and was glad to step into the fray again.

"Tell you what," Espio addressed the team. "With all of us fighting together like this, those Mobians don't stand a chance at all!"

"Hehe, that's right!" agreed Vector. "We'll be ready for 'em. Especially after we train with Tikal."

Marine nodded in agreement and they collectively awaited for Tikal's arrival.

Elsewhere in the depths of Dinosaur Jungle, after six long and tiresome months, Knuckles finally appeared before Tails again. Standing with his arms folded, Knuckles said nothing as he observed the new Tails. Having finally accepted his destined path and Knuckles as his mentor, Tails entered his combat stance and looked as deadly as he could.

"Hmph, you've managed to survive for six months…" said Knuckles in a _matter of fact_ tone. "I can see you've learned a lot in that time. But… you're still not a fighter. Your _real_ training begins now."

Knuckles unfolded his arms and clenched his fists.

"Ready?" he asked Tails.

The young vulpine answered his question with a battle cry as he charged forwards, attacking Knuckles with a barrage of punches. Knuckles was impressed with fox boy's new attitude however he effortlessly dodged all of Tails' attempts. Knuckles backhanded Tails as if he was nothing more than an annoying insect and Tails flew through the air, crashing to the ground.

"What's wrong!? Hahahaha!" taunted Knuckles.

Tails simply got up again and rushed towards Knuckles a second time, putting even more force into each of his swings. Still, he failed to land even a single hit. Knuckles disappeared out of sight for a moment, confusing Tails and in that one brief instance Knuckles counterattacked with a swift kick. Tails was vaulted like a soccer ball across the grass.

"Never lose sight of your target!" warned Knuckles.

"I couldn't see you," complained Tails, clutching his head. "You were moving too fast…"

"Your eyes will lie. Try to _feel_ it," instructed Knuckles.

"I _did_ feel it…" said Tails sarcastically. "That's the problem…"

Knuckles didn't find this funny and struck Tails with his _Thunder Arrow_ attack, electrocuting him. Tails fell to the ground making an mental note…more training and less complaining,

Meanwhile on Angel Island, the team's training had begun. Vector squared off against Espio whilst Marine sparred with Charmy. Big the Cat hopped in an out of both their battles as Tikal and Mr Babylon watched their progress. Mr Babylon encouraged them but Tikal still felt uneasy about the Mobians.

After so many weeks of sensory deprivation, Sonic was glad to finally see something different. The half pipe continued into a larger tunnel that descended downwards. Reaching the conclusion that it was the end of the Special Stage, Sonic curled into a ball and rolled down towards it. As he entered the tunnel, everything went white for a second before the Sonic found himself soaring through a mauve coloured sky. This must be the Astral Plane! In front of him, Sonic could see a small planetoid with what looked like a building and a lake.

"That's it! That must be where Shahra lives! It's just gotta be!" said Sonic excitedly.

Sonic soared towards it as fast as he could, glad to finally reach his destination.

"Yahoo! This is the place! I made it!" said Sonic before suddenly feeling strange.

I then occurred to him that he was no longer in control of his speed and was instead being pulled _towards_ the planetoid with incredible force. That didn't make any sense! How could such a small planetoid have such a strong gravitational pull!? Then again, he should've known better as he was in a world with completely different physics. Alive or not, Sonic realized landing at that speed would likely be painful so he aimed for the planet's water hole. Then it occurred to him that he never learned how to swim…

A pink haired woman was relaxing in the planet's hot spring alongside a Half-fish when all of a sudden something blue crash landed in front of them, splashing them both with water. The Half-fish got scared and dashed out of sight in fear whereas the woman was only mildly annoyed.

"…Okay. That was weird…" she said blinking nonchalantly.

She thought it was the most interesting thing that had happened around here in decades! It then occurred to her that the "gatecrasher" responsible for the splash was actually drowning in the water, begging for help.

"Oh dear! I better get them out of there," she said, diving in to pull Sonic out.

Sonic failed to realize that he can't actually drown anymore but in his panic he'd KO-ed himself. The pink haired woman dragged his unconscious body out and placed lacing him on the grass nearby.

"Kiki!" she called, drying herself with a towel. "Please could you keep an eye on him?"

A robotic monkey showed up in response to her call and she patted it on the head before going inside her spherical shaped house.

Back on earth, Tails' training with Knuckles had gotten really intense. Tails was being pushed to his limits and Knuckles wasn't planning on giving him a break anytime soon. Knuckles went all out with a barrage of punches towards the fox boy whom it took everything within him just to avoid getting hit.

"You call that defending!?" yelled Knuckles as he wound up a heavy punch.

Tails somersaulted backwards using his Tails to balance, barely avoid the impact. The ground shattered where Knuckles' fist landed evidencing the intensity of the blow. By the time Tails stood up again, Knuckles was out of sight. This time Tails anticipated the sneak attack but still wasn't able to deflect it, getting vaulted through the air as a result of Knuckle's kick. As he lay there on the ground Knuckles urged him to get back up.

"You're worthless in battle if you can't learn to control your energy!" he shouted. "Now get _back_ up and try again!"

When Sonic came to, the first thing he noticed was how heavy he felt on the planet. He tried standing up but it felt like someone put lead weights in his body.

"Hey! What's the matter with the ground here!?" he complained.

With great difficulty he finally managed to stand up but his walking pace was very sluggish. Noticing the house before him he slowly made his way towards it. Every step seemed to take a gargantuan effort from him but he seemed to be getting the hang of it.

"I came this far! I _can't_ give up!" Sonic strained. "Just a little more! Gotta get to Shahra! Come on Sonic! You can do it! Keep going one step at a time!"

The more he walked the more he felt normal again and before he knew it, Sonic could walk just fine. Just as he was about to reach for the front door, the robotic monkey Kiki dangled itself before him giving Sonic a startle.

"You must be the one called Shahra right?" asked Sonic. "You're not really what I expected…"

The metallic-monkey just hopped up and down making robotic gibbering noises, confusing Sonic to a great extent.

"Well she _is_ supposed to be the best…" he pondered, deciding to just go with it. "Greetings Shahra, my name is Sonic and I've travelled a great distance to meet you. I seek your training. Please Shahra, I really beg of you. I mean… if you're not too busy."

The robot monkey seemed to find this funny and started to chuckle. It then gestured with its fingers for Sonic to copy it, before starting to do some strange sort of dance. Sonic was definitely confused at this point but having no choice, reluctantly complied. How _was_ dancing supposed to help him?

"So that's the training huh? I guess she wants me to do whatever she's doing…" said Sonic. "Hey Shahra, why do I feel so heavy in this place? Is this supposed to help me with that? Oh right, monkey noises…"

The robo-monkey, then started playing music as it danced! Sonic suddenly forgot what he was doing and subconsciously got into the groove.

"Hey that looks like fun! Can I try?" asked a female voice.

The monkey-bot actually played a record scratch as Sonic looked behind him to see a pink haired woman, with a crescent shaped pony tail, emerging from the house. She was dressed in purple garments, wearing rings on all her fingers and was sitting on a flying carpet! Sonic needed time to process all this and for a few moments couldn't even think of a decent responses. The woman seemed confused by his weird behaviour.

"Looks like I got a weird one on my hands…" she thought to herself.

"Wait a sec, who are you supposed to be?" questioned Sonic.

"I could ask you the same thing!" she smirked. "But as for who I am well…in case the rings haven't already given it away; I'm Shahra the ring genie!"

"Whaaa?" said Sonic in embarrassment. "But then…who's that?"

Sonic directed her attention to the still dancing robot monkey.

"Him?" said Shahra. "That's just Kiki: my pet robot monkey."

"Right…" laughed Sonic nervously. "I thought he was you. Funny huh?"

"I'd say you're more _odd_ than funny," said Shahra. "What did you come here for anyway?"

"Oh well, I was told you were the best, so I was hoping you would train me and make me a stronger fighter," said Sonic bowing politely.

"Training huh?" grinned Shahra. "If you're _serious_ , then okay."

"I'm serious!" said Sonic elated.

"However," interrupted Shahra. "You have to _pass my test_ before we start."

Sonic took this onboard with a mild shock.

"Yes, you must tell a clever joke that will make me laugh. It's been pretty boring here for the last few centuries and I good do with a good laugh."

"What!?" exclaimed a flabbergasted Sonic. "But I'm fighter, not a comedian!"

"Well you'll have to try, if you want to train with me. Make it a good one! Something I've never heard before."

Sonic sweated profusely as he tried to come up with something. He **certainly** wasn't expecting a challenge like this.

"Well come on," laughed Shahra. "Of course if this is too hard for you; you can always go back the way you came…"

It was now or never thought Sonic.

"Escalators don't break down..." he began. "They just turn into stairs!"

"Hehehe…Not bad," said Shahra trying to withhold her giggling.

"It's working" thought Sonic, deciding to step up his game. "What kind of room has no window, door, ceiling or floor?"

"Huh?" said Shahra.

"A Mushroom!" exclaimed Sonic.

"Heh…Very…good…" said Shahra in between chuckles.

Sonic had been saving the best for last, (or at least he thought so) and decided to strike while the iron was hot.

"A girl phoned me the other day and said, "Come on over, there's nobody home." I went over…" Sonic paused for effect. "And nobody was home!"

Shahra had tightly pressed her palms to her lips but couldn't hold back her laughter anymore. She rolled on the floor laughing hysterically.

"Wow I did it!" beamed Sonic. "You laughed, that means you have to train me!"

"You passed the test," giggled Shahra, pulling herself together. "I will train you. Why don't you start by coming at me? I hope you are as good at fighting as you are at comedy!"

"Sure I'll try," said Sonic. "But ever since I got here, my body feels so heavy. It's kinda hard to move."

"Where did you come from anyway?" telepathically scanning Sonic. "Oh I see, Earth right?"

"Yeah," replied Sonic.

"Well no wonder you feel so heavy. The gravity on this planet is a lot stronger than what you're used to. Probably because I trapped an evil monster called Erazor Djinn in here a long time ago. But that's another story, don't worry about it…"

Sonic was having a hard time trying to follow, this eccentric genie. Shahra realized this too and decided to start simple.

"Okay let's try something else. Jump as high as you can!"

Sonic complied by curling into a ball and dashing into the air with all his might. Because of the small size of the planetoid, Sonic ended up getting pulled into orbit and the next thing he knew was being flung across the atmosphere against his will.

"Whoa," marveled Shahra. "Impressive. This one show's potential…"

On Angel Island, the Tikal's training continued as the Warriors continued pushing themselves to new levels. Except for Big (as usual) who sat there eating his lunch. Marine practiced her Doomerang Disk attack, Charmy exercised his Stun Spore technique, Espio perfected his Invisible Leaf Swirl and Vector just shadow boxed until he ended up smashing a tree and it flew towards Big. However Big wasn't entirely useless as he caught it with a single hand and tossed it aside like a candy wrapper.

In the Astral Plane, Shahra had figuratively and literally brought Sonic back down to Earth, or _back to Planet Shahra_ to be accurate.

"Before we begin," she explained. "I'll need to figure out your training regimen. How long do you plan on staying here?"

"Well I'm not sure how many days I was on Special Stage, but I don't think I have that much time," stressed Sonic. "You see, the Mobians are on their way to my planet. When they get there, everyone I know is in a lot of trouble. Nobody on Earth is powerful enough to stand up to them. So that's why I need to spend every single last second I have left training to beat them."

"The Mobians huh?" inquired Shahra. "They're a nasty bunch, I sure wouldn't want to tangle with them. Nuh uh, no sir. But we still need to know how much time you have. Let me check and see where the Mobians are now."

Shahra put both index and middle fingers on her temples and concentrated, causing her hair to act like an antenna. Using her telepathic powers, she pinpointed exactly the point in space at which the Mobians were currently located.

"No doubt about it," she continued. "That's them alright. Judging by their speed and current location, I'd say they're due to arrive on Earth in… **158** days."

" _ **That**_ **soon**?" exclaimed Sonic. "But how could you possibly be able to tell that?"

"My telepathy skills can reach quite far you know," replied Shahra "My hair can pick up all the channels out there. Sure beats any TV set huh? Only downside is the occasional headaches…"

"If you're sure they'll get to Earth in **158** days, I don't have enough time, do I?" asked Sonic grimly.

"Well I'd like more but I still think we can make it work," said Shahra. "Don't worry about it."

"That's awesome!" said Sonic.

"However," Shahra interrupted. "Even the best training doesn't guarantee you'll beat the Mobians. Just know that now. In particular the two who are on their way to Earth are among the strongest and most ruthless warriors in the Universe. To be perfectly frank, these Mobians are even more powerful than _me_."

"They are!?" Sonic exclaimed. "Are you kidding?"

"No, not this time" confessed Shahra. "If you're to stand any chance at beating them, your powers will have to surpass even mine by the time you leave here. Your work's cut out for you."

Sonic couldn't believe what he was hearing. These Mobians were even stronger than Shahra the ring Genie? And he would have to surpass his new mentor in only 158 days if was to even remotely stand a chance of beating them? The real question was could he even do it?

"Well I suppose we should get started," said Shahra. "Kiki! Come over here please!"

Shahra's robotic companion eagerly responded to her call and came before her. Sonic hoped he wouldn't have to do anymore dancing as part of the training.

"First things first," Shahra instructed. "You'll need to get accustomed to the increased gravity here. So your first exercise is to catch Kiki. I'll warn you, you have to be quick, he's pretty sly. If you can't at least do that, we might as well give up now."

"Sure no problem!" said Sonic confidently.

"Okay Kiki, get moving!" Shahra ordered and Kiki dashed off away from Sonic quick as a bullet.

Clearly Shahra didn't know that Sonic was called the fastest thing alive back when he was well…alive. And on Earth. Either ways, he decided to play things safe…at first. Lure his opponent in to a false sense of security before showing of his real speed.

Sonic lightly jogged after Kiki who seemed to be enjoying the chase. It was still hard for Sonic to move around with the increased gravity but spending all his energy breaking into a run wouldn't help either. His plan was to deliberately give Kiki a taste of his movement patterns and anticipate them in advance and then all of a sudden, disregard that strategy for a new one leaving the unsuspecting Kiki vulnerable.

Feeling more confident with walking, Sonic now broke into a run after Kiki who adjusted his speed in response. The real chase began now!

 _And so, at long last Sonic's intense physical training has begun. Will he ever be able to overcome Shahra's challenges? Or will his training come to an end almost as quickly as it started? Only time will tell but time is running out! 158 days remain until the Mobians reach planet Earth._

 _The clock is ticking. Next Sonic Chaos Z!  
_

* * *

 **Due to the short length of the chapter I'll make up for it by giving you a little commentary. Not a fair trade (I know) but better than nothing.**

 **I don't plan to create any original characters for this series because fan characters are usually not very well received. Nor do I want to borrow characters from other Sonic media e.g. Sally Acorn because if I use one, I'll want to use them all... Plus I wanted this to be solely based on the games universe.  
**

 **Every character in the story will be from a Sonic game, unless they are an extremely minor character (like the farmer). Uncle Chuck is an exception since his counterpart Grandpa Gohan since he only appeared in flashbacks in DBZ. Were-fox Tails is a hypothetical transformation akin to the Were-hog so I'll let that slide too. I might consider some Sonic Boom characters making a cameo later...  
**

 **I might also adapt one of the DB movies to make an origins story for Sonic in this series but we'll see. Stay tuned for the next part.**


	7. Sonic's Race Against The Clock!

**And we're back with another chapter.  
**

* * *

Despite his best efforts, Sonic just could not capture Kiki. He could _keep_ up with him, _catch_ up to him and even _outrun_ him but just couldn't get a grasp on the slippery little monkey. Shahra explained that she didn't expect him to manage to do so in just one attempt and only with practice would he improve. Too boost his morale, Shahra magically created a meal for him. Sonic no longer felt any physical hunger but the mere enjoyment he'd get from the simple task of eating was an incredibly satisfying break, from the monotony.

"I can't believe the way he just wolfs it down..." thought Shahra, as Sonic helped himself to a third helping. "You're gonna eat me outta house and home!"

"Nope, I'm saving that for desert," joked Sonic.

"Ha, very funny!" giggled Shahra. "Wait, that was a joke right?"

"Of course," replied Sonic. "Say Shahra, don't you ever get bored of this place? It's such a tiny little world."

"Ah, youth," sighed Shahra happily. "To the enlightened mind this world contains everything I could possibly need, a home, a garden, a bath. But to be perfectly honest I do get bored sometimes. That's when I pick up new hobbies. Oh, yes. But the most recent one I've taken up?"

Shahra gestured to her flying carpet which transformed itself into a floating car shaped like a lamp.

"Cruising around in this baby!" said Shahra.

Shahra climbed inside and zoomed of in every direction possible around the planetoid before grinding to a halt where she started, as Sonic looked on in awe.

"That was fun," said Shahra. "But break-time's over now. Back to monkey chasing! Heheh, that is of course, unless you've changed your mind about my training."

"Oh my mind hasn't changed," affirmed Sonic, getting ready to run. "Well here goes nothing!"

"Just a moment," Shahra stopped him. "Before you go tearing off, would you like to know a secret? The world where the Mobians came from, had roughly the same gravity as here... To them, what I've asked of you would be a walk in the park."

By now Sonic had come to expect such surprises from the Mobian race. Was there no end to their powers? It wasn't all bad because was technically a Mobian himself ergo anything they could do, he could do too right?

"How else do you think they built themselves up?" continued Shahra. "Not to say that's all there is to it of course. Did you know that the Were-beast transformations of the Mobian race is actually their original primordial form? As such, modern Mobians are still born with an innate ability to fight- almost like a sixth sense for battle, if you will. That's what makes them so remarkably dangerous."

"Hey, that's okay!" assured Sonic. "After all, I'm a Mobian too!"

Shahra liked Sonic's confidence but was certainly surprised to see him finally accept his Mobian roots.

Back on Earth, it was the dawn of a new day and in the Mystic Ruins, Tails' continued his training with Knuckles on a cliff by the sea. During his time in Dinosaur Jungle Tails had encountered a lot of horrible things that were responsible for his new persona, however sparring with Knuckles' made them seem miniscule in comparison. Knuckles pulled no punches and pushed Tails to his very limits and further.

Tails unleashed a barrage of punches but Knuckles swiftly blocked each of them before returning fire. Mimicking Knuckles, Tails countered his attempts to the best of his ability before intentionally allowing himself to get hit. In the heat of the moment, Tails ignored the pain and used the opportunity to get close enough to deliver a strong hit to Knuckles' face.

Tails regretted the action as soon as he finished but instead of being angry, Knuckles seemed satisfied to see Tails finally landing a punch on him.

"Nice little jab, there..." he chuckled which only confused Tails. "But who said you were done!"

And then Knuckles used Tails' own trick against him, punching him in the face while he hesitated. The impact threw Tails right off the cliff and straight into the coldness of the river. He splashed around as the river's strong currents carried him away. Tails managed to cling onto a boulder as Knuckles approached the riverside.

"Help!" cried Tails. "Please! I don't know how to swim! I'll drown!"

Knuckles took hold of his scruff and lifted Tails out of the water, before making eye contact with him.

"Believe me, _drowning_ is the least of your worries!" shouted Knuckles, immediately going back to sparring with him'.

Within moments Tails was thrown back into the water again. This time Tails pulled himself out before he ran out of strength. Tails knew Knuckles wasn't going to let him die, because he was useful to him, however Knuckles wasn't going to hold his hand at any point either.

"So far, his true power only shows itself under a full moon," said Knuckles, observing Tails coughing up water. "Which means I'll have to push him even harder..."

By the end of the day, once the sun had finally set and the stars lit up the night sky, Tails was worked to the bone. His fur was dusty, clothes caked with dirt and his body was full of bruises. Feeling sore all over, Tails felt as though he was catching a cold too as he kept sneezing. Probably due to his constant falls in the river.

Fortunately, Knuckles had finally decided to give him a break, creating a campfire for the both of them and giving him some fruit for his supper. Tails groaned as he tried to relax his muscles from the intense workout he'd undergone. Sitting opposite him, Knuckles was pleased with the new Tails' maturity.

"Well, it would seem that the last six months have rung the cry-baby out of you at least," he grinned.

Tails laughed in agreement, trying to get on Knuckles' good side, that is…if Knuckles even had one. Tails decided he should try and engage in small talk but there weren't really much he could discuss with his dad's archrival. Well that topic itself might as well be a decent conversation starter.

"Mr Knuckles, is it really true that you and my dad used to fight each other a long time ago?" asked Tails.

"That fight is far from over, believe me..." asserted Knuckles. "Once the Mobians are defeated-if they're defeated… I intend to pick up where we left off."

"Yeah, but my dad used to tell me…" began Tails in friendly manner. "He said ever since you were reborn, you're not nearly as bad as you used to be. He said now you're more grumpy than evil."

Knuckles gritted his teeth at the thought. It sounded _just_ like the sort of thing he'd expect from Sonic.

"I don't know," confessed Tails. "I think he was kinda right, but…. I mean, my mom is still totally scared of you an' all."

Knuckles couldn't believe he was actually having this conversation. He was warrior meant to be treated with respect and dignity! Not some ghost at a haunted house!

"Stop _blabbering_ and go to sleep!" ordered Knuckles aggressively. "If you think today's training was hard, wait till you get a load of what I've got in store for you tomorrow!"

That was enough to make Tails afraid of Knuckles again.

"Um, yes sir!" said Tails, crawling away to fall asleep.

With all his energy spent, Tails instantly fell asleep the moment he closed his eyes. Knuckles on the other hand just couldn't sleep a wink no matter how hard he tried. Tails words kept bothering him... Knuckles just couldn't understand how and why the fox boy still tried to see the best in him, even after the way Knuckles had been treating him.

Even worse, for the first time Knuckles was really questioning what he was doing with his life. He'd finally avenged his "father" and killed Sonic and felt not even a twitch of satisfaction. As for taking over the world? That was Pachacamac's goal; it didn't really interest Knuckles at all. He decided to just forget all about it and go to sleep.

"Impudent little brat," mumbled Knuckles.

And so it was, that three weeks of intense training came and went, seemingly in the blink of an eye...

Shahra was relaxing in her garden enjoying her breakfast which was just a sandwich.

"Ah, I love toast..." she said to herself. "You know what they say, _a toast to my big mouth!_ I crack myself up!"

Just then, Sonic zoomed past her still trying to catch Kiki causing her to drop her sandwich.

"You can run, but you can't hide, chrome dome!" shouted Sonic. "I've got you now!"

Shahra poofed away her sandwich and in its place poofed up some popcorn. Getting comfortable she sat down to enjoy watching Sonic's quest to catch Kiki.

"Kiki! Get back here!" yelled Sonic as he sped off towards the robotic simian. "Ah-hah!"

Sonic chased Kiki all over the planet before surprising him with a homing attack. However Kiki was one step ahead and deflected the attack bouncing Sonic right off him and crashing onto the floor,

"Ow..." complained Sonic as Kiki taunted him. "Yeah, that's right, just keep laughing… because I've had enough of this!"

Sonic continued chasing Kiki again to the best of his efforts. Shahra grew bored of watching the duo and decided to take a bath in her hot spring. Even from the other side of the planetoid she could feel the chaotic chase still going on.

"My…they're in high spirits today, aren't they?" she mused with her eyes closed.

Before she knew it, Kiki had led Sonic to the hot spring and they both jumped on Shahra's head as a stepping stone across the pool!

"Get back here!" said Sonic not noticing Shahra beneath him.

"Hey watch it!" yelled Shahra. "Can't a genie get a little privacy here!?"

Sonic spin-balled to gain more momentum and for a time it worked until, he got too dizzy and ended up crashing into a tree. Kiki laughed at him from atop the branches.

"I gotta admit, he's a slippery one…" confessed Sonic. "But no robot is gonna make a monkey out of me! You hear that Kiki?"

Kiki was already several meters running away from him again. Sonic stopped his pursuit to think. Tikal promised he'd learn new moves from Shahra but in order to pass this test, he might have to make up a new technique all on his own in order to even the odds. And he DID have a hypothetical idea he'd been meaning to try, so why not now?

"The tables are about to turn Kiki!" said a confident Sonic. "Surprise!"

Kiki couldn't believe what he was seeing, there were several Sonic's approaching him at once!

"Like I said," the Sonic's collectively said "You can run, but you can't hide! I'm coming to get you."

The Sonic's zig-zagged around Kiki from all directions disorientating him as he didn't know which direction to run. With no other options, Kiki jumped high into the air only to be surrounded by an azure tinted cyclone, catching him off guard again. Amidst the chaos, Sonic dashed through and finally caught the slippery Monkey!

There was never more than one of him, Sonic was just _quick-stepping_ really fast and using his _Sonic Wind Attack_ in short bursts to create the illusion that there was more than one of him. Once Kiki was off the ground it was a simple matter of using _Blue Tornado_ to constrict him long enough for Sonic to grab a hold.

"I did it! Yeah! I caught the monkey!" exclaimed a victorious Sonic.

The still soaking wet Shahra rushed forward to observe the spectacle. She was certainly impressed.

"His energy his truly amazing, this one..." mused Shahra. "If he keeps this up, it's possible he may even be able to master the Chaos Control technique."

Meanwhile on Earth, true to his word Knuckles had increased the toughness of Tails' training by bringing him to _Wild Canyon_ for more sparring amongst the ruins. Perched on top of the ancient stone structures, Knuckles and Tails were locked in combat. Tails was doing well until Knuckles backhanded him so hard he was thrown against a stone wall.

"Haha! Come on, what are you waiting for!?" taunted Knuckles.

Not waiting for him to get up, Knuckles charged forward with a series of punches but this time, Tails swiftly dodged each of them, chuckling as he got back on his feet. Knuckles grinned at his achievement.

"Dodging my hits once or twice gives you no right to be cocky…" he warned. "Cause you're still soft!"

Without warning, Knuckles attacked with _Fire Dunk_ and Tails instinctively brought forwards his two-tails in defense. The blast was strong enough to knock him of his feet and he ended up clinging onto the edge of a canyon cliff. With his two-tails injured he couldn't fly nor did he have enough strength to pull himself up. And what did Knuckles do to help? He just stepped on Tails fingers.

"Hey! What are you doing!? Help me!" cried Tails.

Knuckles grabbed hold of Tails wrist and for a moment Tails thought he was safe but Knuckles just let him go, throwing him into the canyon below. Tails screamed as he fell down, rolling into a ball to lessen the impact. After hitting a few rocks on the way down, he crashed into a sand pit, coughing for air.

"If you can't get back up here on your own, you might as well give up!" threatened Knuckles before sitting himself down in anticipation.

As he waited, he soon heard Tails roaring as he charged skywards, spinning his tails at full speed. Good thought Knuckles; getting the fox-boy angry enough should awaken his powers. Tails unfortunately pushed his body too hard and he felt a sharp spasm of pain whip his body from the inside out, sending him falling back down into the sand.

Collapsed on all fours like an injured puppy, Tails dug his fingers into the sand before him and noticed little drops of water falling onto them. When he realized he was crying again, he immediately wiped his tears away and sniffed as hard as he could. Getting back up he looked towards the top of the canyon.

"Hey! Knuckles!" yelled Tails. "Knuckles! You there!?"

There was no reply.

"Listen! I know what you're trying to do!" began Tails. "I get it! You want me to learn to take care of myself!? Well, fine! I'll do your training! Whatever you say! But I'm not gonna quit! You hear me! Knuckles!?"

From high above, Knuckles sat there listening intently to the fox boy's words.

All the while, the "World's Strongest Team" continued their own training on Angel Island. The fighters were starting to do some serious collateral damage to the area around them as the fights became more intense.

Espio and Vector were locked in a brutal battle, evenly matching moves with each other blow for blow. Espio then changed the pace, by using his superior speed and agility to land a series of paralyzing nerve pinches to Vectors body, severely slowing him down. Vector however had an ace up his own sleeve, blocking the majority of the jabs with his massive arms and then immediately dropping them to unleash a powerful fire ball from his jaws point blank at Espio. Off the ground again, Espio used a pain suppression technique to get back in the fight whilst Vector powered up his weakened arms as if they were two organic maces. Tikal, Mr Babylon and Charmy watched their brawl with interest.

"Vector and Espio are getting are and getting more incredible by the day!" said an awestruck Charmy.

Tikal nodded in agreement. Espio and Vector both blasted an energy beam at each other causing a flare of light to shine when both attacks connected. When the light disappeared the two fighters were locked hand in hand, neither side showing any signs of backing down. Amidst the fighting the two fighters both shared a friendly grin, to assure each other despite the intensity, they were still only friends sparring.

Meanwhile Marine was attempting to train with Big, who wasn't taking the fight seriously at all. In one hand he held his fishing rod sword and from the other he was chewing a large fish he'd caught. Marine launched wave after waves of attacks against him but he just swiftly dodged them all (an impressive feat given his size) and all without throwing a single punch.

"Dammit Big! Take this seriously!" demanded Marine.

"Fine," grumbled Big discarding his fish and dropping his fishing rod.

Big then mimicked a sumo wrestlers _shiko_ stomp exercise, prompting Marine to charge at him. As soon as she was close enough, Big side stepped out of the way and stuck his pudgy leg out tripping her over. But before Marine could even hit the ground, Big hooked her with his fishing rod and spun her around, twining her up with the fishing line as if it was spider silk, leaving only her legs and head free.

"Hey what gives!?" said Marine, struggling to break free.

"I win," said Big. "Can I eat the rest of my lunch now?"

"No way! We're not done yet!" protested Marine, wriggling on the floor.

Big merely raised an eyebrow before pulling off her shoes.

"What are you doing now!?" shrieked Marine.

But before she could say another word, Big turned around used his overly fluffy tail to tickle the soles of her feet, sending her into a laughing fit.

"Okay Okay! You Win!" managed Marine in between laughs.

Big agreed but decided to continue tormenting Marine until he'd safely finished his fish. Charmy was weirded out, Mr Babylon nonchalantly watched and Tikal just facepalmed.

"I hope he doesn't plan on using that technique against the Mobians…" snarked Tikal.

In the Astral Plane, Sonic rejoiced after finally catching Kiki and bringing him back to Shahra.

"I caught the monkey! I caught the monkey!" exclaimed Sonic. "That wasn't nearly as hard as I thought it would be! So now what?

"Now then…" pondered Shahra. "Let me see… Something tough. A real grind."

"Yeah!" agreed Sonic.

"Try grinding some sesame seeds!" joked Shahra.

Sonic was too busy to notice, trying to get Kiki of his head.

"Okay, not that that isn't a laugh riot- but if I don't start training soon, the Mobians will..."

"Now, now," interrupted Shahra. "Don't be over-hasty. I was only kidding. You've still got at least a hundred and thirty-five days left."

"But that's practically no time at all!" lamented Sonic.

"Think of it this way," began Shahra. "Training with me is three times as more effective as it would be on Earth, so **135** days of training is actually worth **406**. If you have time to worry, you have time to train! Now let me introduce you to your new training coach. Uhu! I need your assistance!"

"You-Who? I mean, who is Uhu?" asked Sonic.

"That would be me!" called a high pitched voice.

Sonic looked behind him to see a floating blue orb rush towards him, circle him a few times then explode to reveal the Half-Fish from earlier.

"You must be Uhu, right?" said Sonic.

"And you must be Captain of the Obvious club!" Uhu replied.

"Ha, I gotta remember that one…" laughed Shahra.

"Pardon me but just what exactly are you Mr Uhu?" inquired Sonic.

"MR?" exclaimed Uhu. "Hey! I'm not _that_ old! I'm only 99 and a half!"

"Sorry!" said Sonic waving his palms. "I was trying to be polite."

"Hmph. Well I guess that's okay," mused Kiki. "Apology accepted. And if you must know: I'm a 50% fish, 50% wind genie, and 100% dangerous!"

"Oh that is just too rich!" Shahra continued to laugh. "Moving on, since you've captured Kiki, your next task is Uhu."

"Really?" said Sonic. "No, uh, disrespect but you're jokin', right?"

"Shahra, do you hear the way this idiot insults me!?" fumed Uhu. "With your permission, ma'am, I'd be happy to take him down a few notches and teach him a thing or two about respect."

"Yes. Of course." agreed Shahra, magically producing a large hammer.

"Uh what's that for?" Sonic asked.

"Is it me or does that thing seem a bit on the hefty side?" added Uhu.

"Here, Sonic Catch!" said Shahra tossing it towards him.

Sonic caught it and immediately dropped it from its incredible weight. It was certainly heavier than it looked. Uhu found this funny and chuckled at the struggling Sonic.

"This is the _Piko-Piko hammer_ ," explained Shahra. "The real challenge will be to see if you can swat our friend Uhu here with it."

"Seriously?" stated Sonic, looking at the hammer and then back at Uhu.

"Once you've managed to do that, your training with me will truly begin. Now how's that sound?"

"Now you're talkin'!" Sonic enthusiastically said.

"Ha!" scoffed Uhu. "This 8-bit rookie couldn't catch so much as a cold, let alone someone as quick as yours truly!"

Uhu dashed off high into the air, turning back into a ball of light and then tackling Sonic as he sped off across the planet.

"Damn he's fast!" said Sonic. "But they didn't call me the fastest thing alive for nothing!"

Sonic summoned his IFS (inner fighting spirit) to lift the hammer and chase after Uhu. Of course his first attempt was destined to fail and the recoil from his hammer swing caused him to throw himself on the floor.

"Looks like I'll have plenty of time to prepare…" walking back inside her house. "Come on Kiki."

Kiki followed her as Sonic recovered from his fall. Uhu taunted him by pulling an akanbe at him.

"That was just a lucky shot! Just you wait!" affirmed Sonic, who began charging up his strength.

Shahra sat down at her table and helped herself to some tea. As she was sipping it, a loud crash caused her to spit-take. Looking outside, she saw Sonic had caused quite the bit of destruction around her planet trying to smash Uhu.

"Enjoy it now, fish face. Because I'm gonna catch you sooner or later!" exclaimed Sonic.

Sonic and Uhu continued their chase onto the roof of her home, causing even more damage. Sure she could fix it magically but it still required effort!

"Well at least he's got the right attitude," lamented Shahra. "Maybe I _should_ have made grind the sesame seeds…"

Kiki tried to cheer her up by offering her a banana.

"Thank you Kiki," said Shahra, only to hear Sonic knock down a tree.

"I won't give up! I will become stronger than the Mobians!" asserted Sonic.

After they'd completed a long individual hike, across different parts of Angel Island, in weighted clothing, the World's Strongest Team finally regrouped at the Altar of the Emeralds, where Tikal congratulated them.

"I'm pleased to confess that there is nothing left for us to teach you," said Tikal. "Without a doubt, you've far surpassed Mr Babylon and myself. Now you must hone those skills to perfection until the fated day of conflict is upon us. The future is in your hands."

"Right!" the warriors collectively agreed.

"Uh hey, can we get out of these heavy clothes now?" asked Big. "This vest is starting to give me a rash."

"Yes you may do as you wish," sighed Tikal.

Big wasted no time and started stripping immediately, while the others just ignored him.

"I saw we go and put the finishing touches on!" Espio said confidently.

"Yeah," agreed Marine. "At this rate I feel we can keep powering up forever."

"We're invincible!" beamed Charmy.

"If _we're_ invincible," pondered Vector. "I can't wait to see what's become of Sonic."

After two weeks of lugging the enormous Piko-Piko hammer around, it felt like nothing in Sonic's hands and he was smashing it around the planet like he was playing a supersized whack-a-mole game. Shahra chased after him, zapping whatever he broke back to its original state but was having hard time keeping up. For every space she fixed, Sonic created three more. Eventually Shahra decided to wait until Sonic was worn out before fixing things up in one big sweep.

"Almost!" strained Sonic. "You're mine!"

"This fool won't let up!" said Uhu, glancing over his shoulder.

Just like when he was chasing Kiki, Sonic realized that he had to come up with a strategy to defeat Uhu. Caught in a high speed pursuit, Sonic decided to test out his newest manoeuvre which involved using his understanding of Planet Shahra's unique gravity. He jumped into the air, incorporating the hammer into his spin jump attack but then purposely letting it go, causing the Piko-Piko hammer to recklessly spin through the air towards Uhu.

Panicking on the spot, Uhu briskly dodged the hammer by ducking, not noticing Sonic racing off towards the opposite side of the planet. Uhu wasn't the hammer's target, Sonic was! The hammer packed with momentum combined by the gravitational pull made it perfectly arc around the planet's atmosphere allowing Sonic to catch it at the halfway point. Charging towards a dazed Uhu, Sonic swung the hammer right towards his head!

"Oh no!" exclaimed Uhu.

"Game over Uhu!" stated Sonic.

Uhu feverishly braced for impact, only for Sonic to lightly tap him on the noggin. Shahra and Kiki noticed Sonic's achievement and looked on with satisfaction, though mostly from repairing the damage Sonic had dealt.

"Gotcha," said Sonic, to the confused Uhu. "If I whacked you as hard as I could you'd, be smush-"

"Ha! Dream on hedgehog!" interrupted Uhu. "My body is as tough as marble, I'll have you know! Good luck with the Mobians if that's all you got…"

"Really?" smirked Sonic, pointing at the Half-fish's head. "So that bump was already there?"

"Huh?" said Uhu, finally noticing the bump on his head. "Ouch! Where'd that come from!?"

Sonic couldn't help but let out a giggle. Shahra on the other hand was most impressed with her pupil's progress.

"Excellent!" mused Shahra. "And still **118** days left. Could he really be the one? The student I've been waiting for who can master my secret techniques?"

Shahra glanced at Sonic who was fooling around with Kiki and Uhu. She now knew for sure that appearances can be deceiving, as Sonic was the living embodiment of that trend.

"Not only does he possess the strength to perform the Chaos Control," she thought to herself. "He has the purity of heart to wield my most powerful attack: the Final Prism Blaster!"

"You're still going to keep your promise, aren't you?" said Sonic, snapping Shahra back to reality.

"Make no mistake little boy blue!" retorted Shahra. "This training will be more strenuous than you can possibly imagine! Are you ready!?"

"You bet I am!" confirmed Sonic.

"Very well Sonic," replied Shahra excitedly. "Expect nothing less of yourself, than to be the best! I want you to aspire to greatness! You hear? Greatness!"

"It's a deal," said Sonic.

Elsewhere, Tails' training with Knuckles had resumed. With newfound courage, Tails had returned to spar against Knuckles once more, fairing much better this time.

"Yes that's right!" urged Knuckles. "Focus your strength! Learn to control your power!"

 _Exactly what are these powerful techniques that Shahra hopes to teach Sonic? And will they be enough to counter the approaching Mobian threat?_

 _With each passing moment, the Mobians draw closer to earth. Ready or not…in 118 short days, the fate of the planet shall rest squarely on the Sonic and friends' shoulders. The Earth's greatest warriors prepare for the fight of their lives!_

 _Next Sonic Chaos Z!_

* * *

 **And another chapter done. Admittedly this chapter was kind of a drag, because it was mostly just training.**

 **Anyways it's trivia time!**

 **Uhu is indeed a character from the Sonic Storybook series but I thought it be kinda boring if he was always a ball of light, so made him a composite character out of Uhu from the Secret Rings and the Half-fish animal from SA2. _  
_**

 **Also I don't usually insert Gratuitous Japanese into sentences with no rhyme or reason because many people find it incredibly irritating and it can be kinda weabooish but terms like "Shiko" and "Akanbe" are technically official terms in English as well, so I can make some exceptions.**


	8. Chaos Appears! The Mobians Arrive Early!

**Chapter 8: Chaos Appears! The Mobians Arrive Early!**

* * *

Sonic stood before Shahra, outside of her home. After many attempts, he'd finally done it. He'd finally managed Shahra's special techniques. They would certainly aid in his fight against the Mobians.

"Well this is it, the last day of your training with me," said Shahra. "I wish we had more time to hang out but other than that I've taught you all you'll need to know to succeed."

Sonic smiled, in gratitude.

"Why don't we review what you've learned? Just to be sure," asked Shahra.

Sonic merely nodded in agreement.

"Kiki, you're up first."

Sonic and Kiki both entered a pre-racing stance.

"Ready... Go!" said Shahra.

Kiki shot off with lightning speed but before he knew it, Sonic stood right before him and scooped him up effortlessly. Shahra observed her sand timer.

"Wow!" exclaimed Shahra. " **4.8** seconds! You've broken the record!"

Sonic quietly giggled in satisfaction, gently putting Kiki back down.

"Uhu! You're up next!" said Shahra.

"Right!" replied Uhu, hopping into position.

Kiki provided Sonic with the "Long hammer," and even heavier version of the Piko Piko hammer. Uhu and Sonic exchanged a friendly competitive grin.

"And..." began Shahra. "Ready-go!"

"See ya, sucker!" Uhu dashed off in a ball of light, right under Sonic.

But Sonic was two steps ahead, figuratively and literally. He briefly tapped Uhu on the head with the hammer, ending the chase before it even began.

" **1.2** seconds!? That's unbelievable!" marveled Shahra.

"Cool! Next?" inquired Sonic.

"Okay, next up…" Shahra explained. "What say we test your skills with the Final Prism Blaster?"

"Alright, let's do it!" said Sonic enthusiastically.

Remembering what he'd been taught, Sonic took up a combat stance and began to concentrate. Pushing aside all thoughts, he had to look inwards, link himself with the environment. Feel its flow. _Energy cannot be created or destroyed_. It can only be converted from one form to another. Sonic raised his hands and begun drawing it in.

By connecting to the world around him, he summoned its and converted it into the otherworldly light substance that many would mislabel "pure energy." There was no such thing, as pure energy. To say something was made of pure energy would be the same as to say a cake was made of "yummy". But what Sonic was holding, was practically the next best thing. A ball of concentrated power that could be used for destruction, fuelled by the universe around him.

"How am I doin' so far, Shahra?" asked Sonic, observing the aura that surrounded him.

"Very good," replied Shahra. "Now get ready!"

Shahra telekinetically lifted an incredibly large brick in front of Sonic.

"Try to track the super speed of this giant brick. Hold off until it's out of sight," instructed Shahra.

Sonic nodded and watched as Shahra made it circle the planet with increasing speed.

"Super speed, go!" shouted Shahra.

With the brick spinning around the planet as fast as it go, Sonic waited for the right moment to strike. Sonic closed his eyes as it was useless to rely on his sight at that speed. He had to sense the brick in motion to land a perfect hit. Waiting for it…1…2…3…

"Ha!" said Sonic, unleashing the Final Prism Blast.

It hit the target dead center and the brick was shattered to dust in an instant. The explosion from the impact blew dust and smoke all across Planet Shahra, causing it's owner and companions to shield themselves from its pressure. Even so, Uhu and Kiki were swept off their feet and the nearby tree was even uprooted. Sonic however remained unfazed.

"That's the idea, yeah," said Shahra, magically shoving the tree back in place. "Matter of fact, that was pretty amazing. I never would have believed anyone could master it but me. Much less in such a short time."

"Thanks Shahra!" said Sonic. "I've been practicing."

"Hmm of course," said Shahra. "I explained this before but it's important for you to remember how the Final Prism Blaster technique works. Only then can you use it correctly. Essentially, it pulls a small sliver of energy from the grass, trees, people, animals…every living being on the planet, even the air. It pools that energy and releases it in one giant burst."

"Yeah, it's a pretty awesome technique alright," replied Sonic.

"Even here," continued Shahra. "On a planet as small as the one we're on; you see what it's capable of. You can only imagine how powerful it will be on Earth, which has so many more life forms to draw from. Not to mention the energy you'll be able to pull from the sun…"

Shahra waited a moment for her words to sink in.

"But you should be careful…" she continued. "The raw power of your blast could easily become too much for you to control alone. One slip up and you'll destroy your home and all the friends you're fighting to protect."

Sonic grimly nodded in acknowledgment.

"For that reason," said Shahra. "Promise me, don't use it unless you absolutely have to. And even then, just use it once. Understand?"

"You're the boss," said Sonic smugly. "Plus with everything else you've taught me, I probably won't even need it!"

Shahra was glad to hear Sonic's optimism.

"I'm afraid we don't have much time left to put the final touches on your training. The Mobians should arrive on Earth in around **24** hours."

Upon realization of something important, Shahra screamed out loud giving everyone a mild scare.

"What've I done!?" she exclaimed.

"Whoa…" said Sonic. "Wait, done what?"

"Um, so…" stuttered Shahra. "Don't lose your head, but I may have forgotten to factor in how long it would take you to get back home."

"But…" gasped Sonic in alarm. "I thought you were gonna send me back home…right!? Can't you just teleport me there or something!?"

"If I did, you'd only make it back as a mere ghost…" said Shahra sadly, shaking her head.

"Y'mean…" Sonic's face drained of its color. "I've gotta take Special Stage all the way back? It took me six months to get here! I can't make it by tomorrow!"

"No," agreed Shahra. "But you're faster and you can fly now so it won't take you as long! Maybe two days at the most… And I'll have Tikal meet you at the end, to take you the rest of the way!"

"No!" panicked Sonic. "I don't have two days! They're almost there now! Everybody is gonna die!"

"Quite being a big baby!" asserted Shahra. "I messed up! Don't you think I feel bad enough already?"

Sonic didn't know what to say to that.

"Now, it's important we get in touch with your friends back on Earth and fast!" she continued. "Tell them to revive you immediately!"

"How?" asked Sonic, desperately looking around. "How are we supposed to communicate with them? We don't have any-"

"Just listen carefully!" demanded Shahra. "You're going to grab hold of the gold ring on my pony tail. Think as hard as you can, and your friends should hear you."

"Really!?" said Sonic taking hold of the ring. "Like this?

"Yes!" urged Shahra. "That's fine. Now hurry and think!"

"Rouge! It's me, Sonic! If you can hear me, say something, okay? Please! Are you there, Rouge!?"

In the bathroom of the Kyuuri Estate, Rouge was taking a shower. She hated to impose, but the Professor's luxurious facilities were hard to decline. Plus she _had_ , been helping with his research.

"Man this feels great…" she though. "It doesn't get much better than this."

"Rouge are you there!? Rouge!" a voice rang in her head.

"Sonic!?" she shrieked, immediately covering herself with her hands. "Sonic!? Hey where are you? Can't you see I'm taking a bath!?"

"Actually no," replied the voice. "Sorry. I'm here with Shahra the Ring Genie. Tikal sent me to her. She's who I've been training with for the past six months. She's helping me talk to you with my thoughts 'cause I'm still here in the Astral Plane."

"Oh…okay," said Rouge.

"How's things going with the Chaos Emeralds? Have you guys found all seven yet?"

"We sure have," Rouge responded. "We've had them for a while now. We didn't rest until we had them all, in case you were ready to come back early."

"That's great news!" said Sonic. "Okay, then I need you to do me a favor. Use the Chaos Emeralds to summon Chaos and revive me as soon as you can, okay? The Mobians are close and moving fast. They'll be there tomorrow!"

"Tomorrow!?" exclaimed Rouge in alarm. "Impossible! It hasn't been a year yet! They're not supposed to get here for another month!"

"Looks like things have changed," said Sonic. "Now listen, I don't have time to explain but I'm gonna be a little late. Just stall as long as you can, okay?"

"Owowow, don't tug so hard, Sonic!" complained Shahra. "You're hurting me!"

"Oh! Sorry about that..." apologized Sonic.

"We can bring you back right away!" assured Rouge. "You say, you've been training? That's great! We've all been working hard too. So let's do it. You think you're ready to take on the Mobians?"

"Yeah," Sonic confidently responded. "Absolutely…"

"Alright then we'll get to it right away!" shouted Rouge.

Professor Pickle and Flicky had been serving cucumber sandwiches to his guests. That being Milk: Espio's pet Chao and Chip the "flying dog." Unanimously they could help but overhear all the commotion Rouge was making.

"Uh oh," said Milk. "You think she's okay? It's not a good sign when people start taking to themselves in the bathroom…"

"That's weird even for her," said Chip.

Suddenly, and by that we mean _quite suddenly_ Rouge kicked the whole exquisite door down and came out dressed only in a towel!

"Listen up!" she ordered "Get the Chaos Emeralds ready to go! We don't have much time! The Mobians will arrive soon!"

"WHAT!?" the others collectively gasped.

"That's right," said Rouge, flailing her arms. "So get moving!"

All of Rouge's movements caused her towel to fall off, much to her embarrassment.

"My goodness…" said Milk.

"My word!" grinned Chip.

"My bathroom door!" complained the Professor, which earned him a surprised look from everyone including Rouge.

Back on Planet Shahra, Sonic thanked Shahra and her companions as he prepared to leave.

"That was neat!" began Sonic. "Thanks Shahra. I can't believe I got through to them."

"Hehehe, no problem," said Sonic.

"I can't wait to get back home again."

"That's right," said Shahra, "Now, while we wait for your friends to get those Chaos-thingies ready…How about I give you a new battle outfit for you to wear back on Earth? Whaddya say?"

"Really!?" asked Sonic. "You can do that?"

"Just watch!" said Shahra.

And with that she magically conjured up a shiny new golden battle armor for him.

"Wow! Thanks!" said Sonic. "It feels really light. And I'll be able to keep it on Earth?"

"That's right," replied Shahra. "Glad you like it. It's not just light, it can also repel minor attacks. Make sure you, dry clean only though. Ha ha."

"Thank you Shahra, you're the best!" said Sonic thankfully.

In the midst of some wastelands, Knuckles and Tails were sparing as usual. Knuckles threw a series of fire blasts towards Tails, who dodged them as quickly as he could by outrunning them.

"Stand your ground!" urged Knuckles. "You have to counterattack! Don't just evade!"

"Fine!" said Tails.

Throwing caution to the wind, Tails immediately charged towards Knuckles in a zig-zag motion. No matter how many blasts, there was only one opponent. Knuckles who had been precisely firing towards Tails, had subconsciously began to predict his next move…until now, the hunter had become the hunted. Tails was not only heading towards him but was making it harder to aim by never approaching from a single direction. And then, upon reaching point blank Tails readjusted his strategy yet again to dodge Knuckle's fists by launching himself into the air and aerial assaulting Knuckles with a _Fire dunk_ _attack_.

Tails' strategy had worked; Knuckles couldn't counterattack with a Thunder Arrow in time. However…Tails didn't count on the possibility of Knuckles surrounding himself with his Lightning Shield. The moment Tails made contact he was painfully electrocuted and he fell to the ground. Tails didn't get up right away and Knuckles uncharacteristically felt a pang of guilt.

"Are you alright?" he asked with concern. "I may have gotten a little carried away there. You're not gonna die on me, are you?"

Tails forced himself off the ground, now all charred up.

"No fair..." he pouted. "You promised you wouldn't use your any shields."

"And what if I did?" growled Knuckles. "You can _never_ trust your enemy, especially in a fight!"

"Yeah?" said Tails distantly. "Well...But you're not the enemy."

Knuckles couldn't think of a good enough response right away

Meanwhile outside the Kyuuri Estate, Professor Pickle and co placed the Chaos Emeralds on the ground and began to summon the ancient dragon "Perfect Chaos."

"Now!" shouted Professor Pickle. "Perfect Chaos! Come forth!"

The Chaos Emeralds collectively glowed in their individual colors. Green, red, blue, yellow, purple, turquoise, white. An aura surrounded them as a beam shot up into the sky, filling the air with steel gray clouds. Lightning crackled, accompanied by thunder and yet the clouds were so bright. Despite being very far from the island, Knuckles and Tails observed the spectacle.

"Whoa," marveled Tails. "What's going on over there? Have the Mobians arrived!?"

"Not quite…" mumbled Knuckles.

The clouds hung over the island, glowing with an ethereal glow. Chip grew most tense and clung onto Rouge in fear.

"Hey! Get off me!" complained Rouge, throwing him off.

"This never gets any easier…" whimpered Chip, now hiding behind the Professor.

Another whip of lightning, accompanied by a clap of thunder occurred and the rain descended from the clouds. And right before our heroes very eyes, the rain droplets suddenly collected together in one large ball by an invisible force and reshaped into a colossal being. A metallic skeleton appeared with green energy surged through its structure. The creature looked like a combination of a shark and a gigantic eel with squid tentacles thrown into the mix. It was the dragon Perfect Chaos.

"You who have gathered the seven Dragon Balls…" boomed Chaos, in a deep gurgly voice. "Speak your wish, now!"

Our heroes pulled themselves together for they knew Perfect Chaos was most impatient.

"Okay, so…" began Chip, twiddling his fingers. "What if we wished for Chaos to destroy the Mobians before they even got here? That way we wouldn't even have to fight 'em!"

"What kind of stupid idea is that?" Rouge criticized. "What about Sonic? You want him to stay dead?"

"No!" asserted Chip. "That's not what I meant! I figured it'd be easier. Besides, we can always bring Sonic back next time, right..."

"You have requested an illegal wish," boomed Chaos. "The Chaos Emeralds can never be used to wish the death or destruction of another. It cannot be done."

"Well, in that case," the Professor hastily cut in. "Forget about the Mobians and just bring Sonic back...

"Very well, Old One," replied the Dragon. "It shall be done..."

Perfect Chaos' entire body began to glow with a bright white light as he roared into the sky. Knuckles and Tails heard him as well.

"It would seem that Sonic's resurrection is underway…" thought Knuckles. "But that can only mean one thing...the Mobians will reach the Earth sooner than we expected!"

The wish had taken its effect and on her personal planet, Shahra was the first to notice. Sonic may look the same but being a genie she could tell from just a glance. There was also the fact, Sonic's green irises reappeared on his eyes, so there's that…

"Ah," said "Your friends have revived you! Your spirit can finally return to your body!"

"Woohoo!" said Sonic in elation.

"There's no time to lose!" Shahra reminded him.

"Right!" agreed Sonic.

"Remember..." she warned. "The Mobians are as evil as they are powerful! Don't underestimate them. You can't let your guard down, not even for a second!"

"And try not to get wiped out again!" Uhu added. "Next time it's for keeps!"

"I'll do my best!" Sonic assured them. "Thanks for the tip Uhu. I know the Chaos Emeralds can't grant the same wish twice. So, I guess I'm just gonna have to win!"

Shahra nodded in agreement and gestured to the portal leading back to the Special Stage.

"Thanks again for everything you've done for me, Shahra. You too Kiki and Uhu."

"Be safe!" waved Uhu.

"So long guys!" said Sonic flying off into the portal. "Bye-bye!"

As he warped through the portal, the trio stood back on Planet Shahra contemplating the last few months.

"I wouldn't have believed someone with his level of strength existed," said Shahra. "Or that someone so heroic and selfless could exist if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes. We're not likely to run into anyone like him again."

"Sonic's even stronger than you now, isn't he?" asked Knuckles.

"Well ahem maybe..." coughed Shahra. "I don't know about that. But one thing's for sure, he'll never be able to compete with my comedy! I mean, did you hear those jokes of his? Do they even hold a candle to mine?"

Kiki merely made some robotic monkey sounds in response. But anyone could tell he wasn't impressed by Shahra's sense of humor either.

"Oh, give it a rest Kiki!" pouted Shahra.

Sonic's new levitation ability certainly helped him clear through the Special Stage much faster, no longer restricted to the road. He couldn't keep it up indefinitely but he was certainly twice as effective since the last time he crossed it.

"I've got to hurry!" thought Sonic.

But even as Sonic began his return along the million-mile Special Stage, elsewhere, the Mobians' year-long journey across the galaxy was nearing its end. And the following day, at **11:43** AM… the duo descended upon the Earth.

It was a bright peaceful sunny day in Westopolis. Among the streets there was the usually hustle and bustle of the commuters. It was just like any other day. A parent and child walked by the sidewalk.

"Dad, I'm hungry," said the little girl.

"Oh," said her father, looking at his watch. "I guess it is about time for lunch."

His watch ticked to 11:43 just as the high pitched screeching sounds begun. The residents fearfully looked to the sky in fear, as two objects pierced through the atmosphere, charging towards the Earth at breakneck speeds. The little girl clung closely to her father out of fright. It had begun.

The Attack Balls crashed straight through a skyscraper before reaching the ground, causing it to crumble. The impact caused further tremors as windows shattered, walls cracked and debris rained from the rooftops. The citizens went into a panic, running in all directions trying to escape the onslaught of danger. And the worst was still yet to come.

Two massive craters scarred the road they landed on, as onlookers anxiously observed the destruction, bewildered by such a strange occurrence.

"Whoa, what was that!?" one of them demanded.

"I'm scared!" another one muttered.

Fear mixed with curiosity, some of them began to approach the craters, spewing smoke. The people anxiously questioned each other, fearful of the unknown.

"Did you see that!?"

"I don't believe it! They just fell outta the sky!"

"Just what the heck are these things?"

"I don't know! They just came outta nowhere!"

"Should we call someone?"

Then the Attack Balls opened up and their passengers climbed out to the amazement of the onlookers. A black hedgehog and…a mechanical being? Shadow the hedgehog stepped out and surveyed his surroundings, with disinterest. His robotic companion followed suit, paying particular attention to the numerous Earthlings around him. Omega's eyes shone with a piercing red glow.

Each one of our heroes scattered across the regions, collectively sensed the great disturbance.

"Well it seems the Mobians are here…" muttered Knuckles.

"And they're stronger than we are, aren't they?" inquired Tails.

"Vector, I'm scared!" said Charmy.

"Dammit! They aren't supposed to be here yet! They're a month early!" complained Vector.

"So it begins…" lamented Espio.

Even Sonic on the Special Stage could feel it.

"The Mobians ought to be getting there about now!" cursed Sonic. "I've got to hurry! Hold on guys I'm coming!"

And with that Sonic, kicked things into overdrive putting incredible strain on himself to go even faster.

 _At long last the day of reckoning has come; the Mobians have arrived! The fight for the survival of Earth begins!_

 _Next Sonic Chaos Z!_

* * *

 **Huh, despite being the usual length of page numbers, this chapter seemingly has less words than usual. Probably because it was very dialogue heavy-I mean, I finally learned the art of "subtlety"!**

 **To avoid burnout I'll work on a different story next and then get back to this one...**


	9. Espio's Struggle! The terrible E-Robots!

**Next chapter. Biggest one yet.  
**

* * *

All eyes of the crowd were drawn upon the two strange visitors. Shadow the hedgehog examined his surroundings.

"They call this place Earth right? It's not as bad as I was expecting," said Shadow.

"Yeah but before we go sightseeing how about we say _**hello**_ to the locals?" droned Omega.

"Heh. Go easy on them," smirked Shadow.

Omega took that to mean _attack with only one arm_ as he converted his metallic right hand into a cannon and began charging. Firing a single round in the air, the sky rained down several smaller blasts causing devastating effects. From their various locations, Earth's greatest warriors felt the disturbance.

"What the…" tensed Vector, shielding the distraught Charmy. "Damn it! It must be them. What have those monsters done?"

"Oh man…" mumbled Espio.

"Whoa this is intense…" lamented Marine.

Knuckles simply growled in anger.

Omega jettisoned into the sky alongside Shadow observing his handiwork. Much of Westopolis City had been destroyed. Omega laughed maniacally at the results.

"I don't think I made a big enough impression! Maybe I oughta try again!" said Omega.

"It would be best if we left it at that Omega," interrupted Shadow. "The more damage we do now, the less of a price we'll get when we sell this planet."

"Oh…right," said Omega. "Well that's fine. We should probably start looking for those Chaos crystals that grant wishes anyway."

"They're called Chaos Emeralds," Shadow corrected him. "And the first thing we need to do is find the one who killed Mighty and extract a little information about their whereabouts."

"Oh yeah," said Omega, looking forward to the chance of a fight.

"Now of course if the Chaos Emeralds were being held somewhere in this vicinity, then our chance to use them just went up in smoke didn't it? All because _you_ had to say _hello_."

Omega's expression never changed but Shadow could sense his dissatisfaction.

"I guess I wasn't thinking. It won't happen again…" said Omega.

"Forget about it," stressed Shadow. "What's done is done. Now let's try to scope out the highest power level on this planet. Finding the one who killed Mighty should be as simple as that."

And so Shadow engaged his visor while Omega relied on his internal Scouter vision to scope out the area.

"Huh that's strange…" stated Omega. "According to my findings, there are multiple readings for power levels over **1000**."

Shadow didn't say anything but he seemed to have reached the same conclusion

"Why would there be so many of them?" inquired Omega.

"Just take it easy," ordered Shadow. "No reason for us to be alarmed. As I said, we find the one with the highest power level and go after him."

Omega nodded in agreement.

"I've got 'em!" announced Omega. "Looks like two fairly high readings right next to each other."

"Yes…" agreed Shadow. "Seems you're right. What do you say we go and investigate?"

Omega clasped his hands in response and together, the space warriors dashed through the skies towards their targets.

Elsewhere at the Kyuuri Estate, the gang had activated Professor Pickle's laptop to try and find out just what was going on…though they already had a good idea. Rouge loaded up a video as a news reporter began detailing the situation.

"The cause behind the large scale Earthquake is still unknown to authorities at this time. Reports are flooding in that attempts to call Westopolis, which is in the epicenter, have been unsuccessful; causing grave concern for those within the city."

Rouge sternly took this on board; Chip and Milk became white as ghosts whilst the Professor simply clenched his fists in anger. Flicky clung to his shoulder in fear.

"No…" he muttered. "No! It's the Mobians! They've arrived!"

"Let's go then!" demanded Rouge, putting on the modified Scouter. "This thing will tell us exactly where they are."

"Did you see what just happened!?" exclaimed Chip. "There's no way I'm going with you!"

"Wait! I'll go with you Rouge!" assured Milk in spite of her fears. "I'm sure Espio will be there and he'll need all the help he can get!"

"Hold on now, we better **not** …" said the Professor, much to Milk's shock. "Our power levels are much too weak to be effective. Are best bet is to stay here and just hope for the best. That includes you Rouge. You might be the strongest one among us but you're also knowledgeable. You're too valuable to lose in a fight and too weak to make a difference. That's why you need to stay here. We'll send a camera-droid out to observe the battle via long distance."

Rouge didn't like what she was hearing but she knew better. She clasped her fist in anger.

"Oh Sonic, where are you? We need you Sonic!" she lamented.

Sonic was charging across Special Stage as fast as he could. It was taking an incredible strain on his mind but the mere thought of his friends back home was all the motivation he needed.

"Hold on guys! I'm coming as fast as I can!" thought Sonic as he sped off.

As he did so, the Mobians continued their own journey through the skies.

"Hahaha! This is fantastic!" chortled Omega. "Compared to Planet Mobius, the gravity here is next to nothing! Makes flying a breeze!"

Planet Mobius… The thought of which was nothing but unpleasant memories for Shadow. He simply repressed it and flew even faster.

Espio felt their presence from miles away.

"Here they come! Man they're moving fast…" he said to himself.

Elsewhere Marine picked up the signal too.

"They're heading in the direction of those other two big powers. It must be Knuckles and Tails!"

Vector zoomed off towards the direction of the Mobians only to find Charmy following him.

"Charmy, go find a safe place to hide, okay?" he urged.

"No way!" retorted Charmy. "I'm coming too!"

And finally Knuckles sensed the Mobians approaching as well.

"Tails, be ready!" he commanded. "They're coming right for us."

"Right!" Tails bravely replied.

"There's nothing to fear," assured Knuckles. "Remember compared to one year ago, you and I have managed to increase our power tenfold."

"I'm ready!" Tails assured him back.

Knuckles felt an anomaly and quickly whipped around to face it.

"There's someone else, closing in from that direction!" said Knuckles turning again. "And there too! Feels like they got us surrounded!"

"Wait! So you mean there's more than two Mobians coming for us?" asked Tails anxiously.

Before either of them could say another word, from atop a large plateau something descended down behind them with lightning fast speed.

"Look out they're here!" Tails warned hysterically.

The duo turned around to see not the Mobians but instead Marine the Raccoon!

"Hey, long time no see? Knuckles…" snarked Marine.

Tails tried to figure out if this person was a threat or an ally. Knuckles found Marine's little stunt most amusing.

"Oh it's just you huh?" he laughed. "And what exactly do you think _you're_ doing? You do know you're just gonna get in the way…"

"Then again, I'm guessing you won't be the only fool taking part in this," added Knuckles.

"Right," confirmed Marine. "The whole gang is coming. I just happened to be the one that's closest to where you were."

"I remember now!" said Tails. "You're the one I saw at Professor Pickle's place! Right?"

"Yeah," she replied. "The name's Marine. You sure have buffed up since the last time I saw you. You kind of remind me of Sonic when he was your age."

"And you grew up with my dad didn't you?" asked Tails excitedly. "He told me lots of stories from back then. So you're the one who used to train to make up for being short."

As true as it was, Marine didn't like the sound of that.

"Hold up," she pouted. "Sonic told you what now?"

Tails didn't realize he was being too honest. Knuckles however hadn't forgotten the real danger had yet to arrive.

"Hey you two," he grinned. "Enough of your small talk. They're here!"

Tails and Marine collectively looked skywards to see two silhouettes floating in the sky.

"Look at what we've found," laughed Omega. "Three pathetic insects doing their best to look tough!"

"You can give them credit for one thing," added Shadow. "They at least seem to know who we are."

The two Mobians began slowly descending downwards in front of their opponents. The trio on the ground were certain that these monsters were more dangerous than Mighty…

"It looks like they've been waiting for us," mused Shadow.

Omega chuckled at the thought with his metallic scratchy voice. The Earth Warriors sternly locked eyes with the Mobians, showing no signs of fear.

"You must be the Mobians," inquired Knuckles, whilst observing Omega. "Hmph, you're not quite what we expected."

"Don't let my mechanized appearance fool you," said Omega. "We are indeed the Mobians Warriors you've been waiting for. And forget whatever bad rumors you've heard about us, **because we're much worse**..."

Knuckles didn't find that funny at all.

"I'll say this once," he asserted. "Forget whatever business you have here and leave this planet. This is your first and last chance to get out of this alive-"

"That voice!" realized Shadow. "I see. You're the lucky one who was able to kill Mighty."

Knuckles didn't expect them to know that.

"How do you-"

"Come now," Shadow interrupted him. "Didn't Mighty tell you? Our scouters also work as communicators…"

Omega scanned his opponents and came to a surprising conclusion.

"Hey, I think the Red one is a Nocturnian. He has their crescent shaped insignia on his chest," revealed Omega.

"Yes…" agreed Shadow. "No doubt about it. It almost makes sense in a way, that Mighty would have had a hard time with the likes of him."

Knuckles was confused by their words. As far back as he could remember, he always believed he was native to Earth and as far as he knew, the mark on his chest was just a birthmark. Was he too, some kind of alien, just like Sonic?

"Okay, so what's a Nocturnian?" asked Knuckles.

"The dominant biped race of Planet Nocturne," explained Shadow. "Not only are they known to have above average power levels, Nocturnians are said to have mysterious hidden abilities as well."

"So…I'm one of these…Nocturnians?" thought Knuckles.

"I've also heard," Shadow continued. "That a chosen few are capable of performing tricks, almost like magic. Aha! You must be the one who created these Chaos Emeralds, aren't you?"

Knuckles simply gritted his teeth in anger. Tails and Marine were flabbergasted to say the least.

"No way…" said Marine. "How could those two know about the Chaos Emeralds?"

"We don't really know about them," responded Omega. "It's the main reason we're here. Now just hand 'em over, nice and easy! You're friend here may be a Nocturnian, but you're bugs to us! And you're gonna be crushed by our Mobian power!"

"Ha! Is that right?" scoffed Knuckles. "I guess I should start by thanking you for teaching me about my ancestors. But, you're _wrong_ about two things. Firstly, I had no hand in creating the Chaos Emeralds. Though I'm willing to admit they won't work without me."

Omega widened his "optical field surveillance cameras" or in other words his _eyes_ at this revelation.

"Second, as you can see I'm more of a _warrior_ than a simple magician," said Knuckles entering his combat stance. "And you're wrong if you think you're Mobian power will save you from **me**!"

Faraway at the altar of the Emeralds, Tikal telepathically observed the situation.

"Oh Tikal…" said a concerned Mr Babylon.

"I-I had no idea…" she lamented. "For the first time in my life, I have heard about my origin. Now I know why I have always possessed special powers. Yes, it's true...my predecessor was responsible for the creation of the Chaos Emeralds. It was a very long time ago...it all makes sense now."

Tikal still retained fragments of memories from the time she and Pachacamac were a single being. Now they snapped into place like a jigsaw, revealing the full picture.

"They had seen visions of the Perfect Chaos Dragon and had created the Chaos Emeralds in answer to a deep yearning it had caused. I always felt a sense of familiarity with the Emeralds that went beyond our connection. That's why I created the Master Emerald to uphold this island. When I had finally succeeded, I felt as if I had made it home. Or rather if a piece of home had made its way to me…" "

Back on the battle field, Shadow took off his visor.

"Oh and Omega, disengage your Scouter."

"What?" asked Omega.

"These pests are able to raise and lower their power levels in response to their opponent. Which makes our scouters totally unreliable…"

"Ah right," said Omega. "Good thinking Shadow, I remember now. That's how that weakling Mighty got himself killed. Got fooled by his scouter readings and lowered his guard."

"Mighty…" Marine felt the name rang a bell. "Wasn't he the Mobian that was so tough you and Sonic had to team up on him and still, you were just barely able to beat him?"

Knuckles didn't like being asked stupid questions and gritted his teeth again in frustration.

"They're calling _him_ weak?" exclaimed Marine.

"Alright! Enough talk, let's see how these pests handle themselves in action," said Shadow turning to his comrade. "Hey Omega, I think it's time we test out the E-series bots. Get them ready. All six of them."

"Very well," agreed Omega.

"E-series?" repeated Marine in confusion.

"W-what are they?" said an anxious Tails.

Omega rumbled like a vending machine and his chest compartment opened up. He reached inside with his sharp claws to retrieve six metallic orbs.

"Yes…" hissed Omega. "Soon you'll be telling us everything we want to hear."

Omega threw them on to the ground before him and spread his hands out to juice them with electricity from his fingertips.

"Whoa, what the heck is he doing?" pondered Marine.

"There," said Omega.

The orbs crackled for a bit before growing twice their size and shattering open and restructuring themselves in the shape of tank robots, all strangely reminiscent in design to Omega himself. Though unlike Omega, they were not organic creatures trapped in shells but purely mechanical in nature. There were six of them, each with adorned with symbol and serial number on their front.

The first and largest one was shaped like a green hourglass with large over-sized black boxing gloves and red eyes; this would be E-100 Alpha. The second was a black airborne fighting machine equipped with two spiked gauntlets, twin energy cannons and a single green eye; this would be E-101 Beta. The next one was Red in color, boasting a "chicken walker" design, its primary weapon was machine gun/cannon hybrid and a jet booster on its back: this would be E-102 Gamma. The next two chicken-walkers looked like near identical copies of each other, except one was Blue and the other was Yellow, both having twin stinger missile launchers as arms; they would be E-103 Delta and E-104 Epsilon. Finally the last one boasted a purple color scheme and had spider-legs, the torso being turret shaped and equipped with gun barrels around his perimeter; E-105 Zeta.

"Whoa!" exclaimed Marine. "This is not looking good."

"Each of you, show them a sample of your power," ordered Shadow.

And so, the robots simultaneously began tearing up the surrounding landscape with ease. They circled the Earth trio but fortunately attacked everything except them. They ploughed through the nearby rocks and boulders as if they were nothing more than paper.

"Alright!" demanded Shadow. "Your targets are those three. Now attack them E-robots!"

The trio collectively tensed in preparation for the worst. The E-Robots swarmed our heroes instantaneously; despite their bulkiness they were quite agile. They all fired a barrage of bullets but they simply rebounded right off the heroes. Since charging up blasts at them would take too long, the robots went the old fashioned way, with plain fisticuffs. Knuckles and Marine were up on their feet, countering the robots attacks with their own. In the confusion, Tails' fears got the best of him and he began to lose focus. E-102 Gamma took advantage of this opportunity and charged up a round, hoping to shoot Tails at point blank distance. Sneaking up behind him, Gamma did just that.

Tails was thrown off his feet and skid across the ground. Delta and Epsilon advanced towards him but Knuckles boldly stood in their way.

"Tails, do not lose your nerve!" instructed Knuckles.

"Right," wailed Tails, before regaining his composure and entering a combat stance.

Marine did the same as the E-Robots followed suit.

"It's about time we go on the offensive!" she said.

"Marine!" a high pitched voice called from above.

Everyone including the Mobians looked up to see two more fighters join the fray. It was Vector the Crocodile and Charmy Bee.

"Vector hey! And Charmy! You came too?" asked Marine.

Charmy nodded.

"I was under the impression there was only two Mobians," said Vector, getting right down to business.

"Well a lot has happened…" explained Marine. "Now there's six of their minions too."

"Two, six, eight…makes no difference to me," asserted Vector, turning his attention to Tails. "So who's the kid? I assume that's Sonic's little boy?"

Tails was most impressed with Vector's confidence and no nonsense attitude.

"Yep," confirmed Marine. "Knuckles here has done a good job of training him."

Vector simply nodded before constricting his eyes at Shadow, addressing him personally. Shadow returned the gesture. But that wasn't all, for another fighter entered the scene dropping down with his back turned to the Mobians. Turning around once to face them, he glanced over his shoulder to greet his friends.

"What's up? Sorry to keep you waiting," the chameleon spoke.

"Hey Espio!" beamed Marine.

Tails was impressed yet again being in the presence of another fighter with such a high power level. He was glad they were on his side. Atop a large plateau, not too far from the battle zone, the camera droid was quietly streaming the events to Professor's laptop back at the Kyuuri Estate. Rouge, the Professor, Chip and Milk had their eyes glued to the screen. Unbeknownst to them Amy had just arrived too.

"Wow, Tails looks really strong," muttered Rouge.

"Where's Tails!?" asked Amy barging in towards them.

Everyone stepped aside so that Amy could take a gander at her son after almost a year. When Amy saw him she could hardly believe what she was seeing. Tails looked transformed, now sporting a fierce look of determination in contrast to his meek usual self. His body was way more muscular than the average child of his age and he looked as though he'd gone in anc out of a warzone before the fight had even begun. But the hardest part to believe was the fact he: a mere child, would be going up against perhaps two of the deadliest fighters in the universe took the cake.

"Oh my goodness..." murmured Amy. "What happened to him!?"

"Nothing," said the Professor. "He's just bigger and stronger now, that's all."

"Oh Tails..." lamented Amy. "You've...you've been growing up without me...

"He reminds me of Sonic when he was younger," said Rouge.

Just then Delta and Epsilon dashed past the camera droid's view in unison, grabbing everyone's attention.

"D-Don't tell me, my little boy is going to have to fight those-those monsters!?" said Amy, powerless to do anything but watch.

"Don't worry Amy," assured the Professor. "You must have faith in your child. Believe us when we say he's exceptionally strong like his father. I know it's hard but the fate if our planet partly rests in his hands. I wish there was another way but for now we must believe in Tails and the Earth Warriors. "

"I know he's important to the mission..." said Amy. "But still...I'm his mother! How do you think I feel putting him in danger like that? I can't bear the thought of anything happening to him. Even if he's one of strongest people in the world, he's still my son..."

Rouge placed a comforting hand on Amy's shoulder as they all collectively watched with fear. Back on the battlefield things had started to heat up.

"Looks like everyone's here but Sonic, huh?" asked Espio.

Shadow examined his opponents again, counting all six of them.

"Six of you huh? Interesting, that's the exact same number of E-robots we have," he said before addressing his opponents. "What do you say? Each of you can take turns fighting one of our robots, let's see what happens. You know, like a game."

Knuckles was extremely pissed off with the Mobian's twisted sense of humor.

"We're _not_ here to play games!" he growled. "And we're _not_ gonna fight on your terms! We'll take you all on at once!"

Marine waved her palms in the air, trying to calm him down.

"Whoa! Whoa! Easy now… Maybe it's not such a bad idea after all," she explained. "This game can buy us some time until Sonic gets here!"

"I'm up for it!" smiled Vector, punching his fists together. "These annoying tin-cans don't scare me. I could use a good warm up."

Vector stepped forwards from the others and even flicked a piece of bubblegum in his mouth to demonstrate how relaxed he was about the situation. Omega found his enthusiasm most amusing.

"Hahaha! _That's_ the spirit!" he taunted. "Fresh meat for the grinder! But give it a minute and then you won't be so cocky once you see what these _tin-cans_ can do!"

"You'll be going first," Shadow addressed Alpha. "Hit 'em as hard as you can. Got it?"

E-100 Alpha's eyes beamed once in acknowledgment. Alpha wasted no time, charging forwards towards Vector at breakneck speeds. Vector decided he would break this robot's neck if it had one, so he settled for the next best thing and slammed his large fist right into its "face", flinging it across the air.

Vector then charged towards his opponent, hoping to finish it off before it could recover. Alpha knew it wouldn't be able to steady itself on the ground in time so it opened its head, to release a powerful acid stream. Vector simply cart-wheeled to one side and the acid continued it's path towards the Earth warriors. They all scattered aside, save for Tails who reacted too slow. Luckily Knuckles did a 180 and pulled both Tails and himself out of the way at the last second. The acid severely burned the ground in front of them, even causing it to spew steam.

Alpha had made a grave mistake by using its acid attack for it had opened its interior exposing its most vital parts. Vector seized the opportunity, spewing out his bubblegum with his _Vector Breath_ attack like a bullet and it exploded right inside Alpha's body. The powered up gum oozed all over the internal mechanisms causing E-101 to malfunction almost instantaneously. Vector followed it up by throwing Alpha to the ground with a single punch. Alpha writhed on the ground, heavily damaged.

"Yeah!" cheered Charmy.

"Whoa yeah! That'll show 'em Vector!" beamed Marine.

"Awesome!" marveled Tails.

Shadow was not pleased at all as Vector turned around to face him. Even Omega couldn't quite believe what just happened.

"There's no way!" complained Omega. "An E-Robot's power level is **1200**! Every one of these robots is supposed to be about as strong as Mighty was."

"All that means, is that the Alligator man is stronger…" Shadow grinned.

"But our…"

"A simple miscalculation."

"But the data says-"

"Hahahaha, it's fine," Shadow cut him off. "If anything, it should make our little game more entertaining."

Shadow then aimed with his fingers and blasted an energy bolt which impaled E-101 Alpha and finally destroyed him. His broken remains lay there on the ground, spewing smoke. The Earth warriors couldn't quite believe it. Shadow had destroyed one of his own minions? Knuckles just stood there with his arms folded as if he hadn't expected any less. Even Omega was dumbfounded.

"Shadow…wha-what was that for?" he inquired.

"It made the grave mistake of underestimating its opponent," mused Shadow. "And I believe I told it specifically it to hold nothing back. Let that be a lesson to the rest of you."

"Man, that guy's a creep!" Marine pointed out.

"He's ruthless," thought Knuckles. "This is the way he treats his allies. I don't expect him to be any better to his enemies."

"Now," declared Shadow. "Who wants to be next?"

There was a pause. Marine decided she would take one for the team.

"Yeah, I'm ready for ya-"

"Hold on Marine," insisted Espio.

"Espio?"

"Let me have a crack at 'em," said Espio. "I think it's time I showed these thugs no one comes to Earth and pushes us around."

"But Espio, I'm just as capable of-"

"You've already been wished back with the Chaos Emeralds before, I _haven't_ ," Espio reminded her. "So if anything bad does happen, at least we know that I can be revived right?"

Marine couldn't argue with that logic.

"Let me take care of this one," said Espio. "They won't even see me coming."

"Aw look at the friends, how precious!" mocked Omega. "Well what are you waiting for Gamma? Get him!"

Gamma stepped forward and gestured at Espio with its normal hand to bring it on.

"Alright then!" challenged Espio. "Let's get this over with! Come on!"

On Special Stage, Sonic had been racing forwards non-stop trying to get back as fast as he could.

"I don't know why," thought Sonic. "But I've got a bad feeling all of a sudden. Hold out for as long as you can Knuckles. I won't slow down until I'm there. I promise!"

Espio charged towards Gamma in the blink of an eye and Gamma mimicked his movements. The next thing Tails knew, they were both out of sight.

"They vanished!" exclaimed Tails.

"Wrong Tails!" Knuckles corrected him. "They're just moving incredibly fast. Try to feel out their energies like I taught you."

"Feel their energy?" asked Tails.

The others nodded in approval.

"Come on! You're the only one who can't see them," said Knuckles.

"What!? Everyone but me?" pouted Tails.

Deciding he wasn't going to be left out, Tails focused all his efforts on sensing their energy. Knuckles' earlier words rang in his head.

"Concentrate. Let your body take in its surroundings-"

"-See with my body, not with my eyes," Tails finished the sentence.

It took a few moments but as if by the flick of a switch it was all so clear to him. He could see them colliding in the air.

"See them now?" inquired Knuckles.

"I see them!" replied Tails.

Espio and Gamma matched each other blow for blow. E-102 Gamma changed up its fighting style by incorporating some gun-fu, hoping to catch Espio off guard with the projectiles. Espio however, was already two steps head, shielding himself with the _Ninja Leaf Swirl_ technique before returning fire with a barrage of shurikens, though they were ineffective at damaging Gamma's armored shell.

Espio went in for the kill, trying to behead Gamma with a swift strike of the hand but Gamma caught his arm and used his momentum to fling him into the sky. Espio spin-jumped in the air and dropped down with a powerful kick. Gamma boosted out of the way as Espio made the touchdown. Gamma tried to sneak attack him by spinning around and rushing towards him, with his gun ready. Espio decided to use a trick of his own and used his _Chroma Camo_ technique, briefly turning invisible. Gamma was not expecting this and was caught off guard for a few seconds. That was all the time Espio needed. He sprung into the air above right above Gamma and launched his powered imbued _kunai_ with so much force it speared right through Gamma's face.

Gamma came crashing down with a rough landing but Espio was far from done. Spinning in the air, he tucked both knees and then stomped down as hard as he could, being sure to land squarely on Gamma's torso, pounding the robo firmly into the dirt and creating a large crater. Espio didn't stop there either, bringing both fists down on Gamma's machine gun arm and tearing it right off his body and hitting Gamma's body repeatedly with it.

"You got him!" announced Marine as Charmy cheered Espio on.

"No way," said Tails, awestruck from how easily Espio dispatched Gamma who fought at full force.

The camera droid reported the scene of Espio's victory back to the gang at the Kyuuri Estate. They all cheered him on, even though there's no way he could hear them.

"Yeah way to go Espio!" said Milk gleefully.

"That's what I'm talking about," added Chip.

The shattered remains of Gamma finally stopped moving and it's lights dimmed out. Satisfied Espio stepped out of the crater and tossed the battered and broken arm in front of the Mobians, for all to see.

"Not again…" fumed Omega.

Espio spat once and turned to face the Mobians.

"Ha!" he scoffed. "It looks like these little E-robots of yours aren't as _nearly_ as powerful as you made them out to be."

"Why you..!" Omega clenched his fists.

"Easy Omega," Shadow put his arm in the way, totally relaxed.

"I'll save my friends the trouble and take care of the last four by myself," gloated Espio.

Shadow merely laughed in his face.

"Now that I'd like to see," he said. "Too bad you won't get the chance."

"What?" asked Espio, thinking Shadow was calling him weak.

Tails was the first to notice and let out a yelp. Espio turned around in alarm to see Beta dropping down on him. Being a robot, Espio couldn't sense its energy. Leave it to the Mobians to resort to dirty tricks! Beta electrocuted him and firmly latched onto him with its powerful arms. Before Espio could do anything, Beta injected him with some kind of serum causing him to scream in agony, as his allies looked on helplessly.

"That's cheating!" screamed Marine.

"Shut up!" retorted Omega. "It's not like there weren't any rules to begin with! Other than one on one! And lemme tell you this, Beta's speciality is a poison serum. You're injected friend is already a dead man walking and you're all next!"

The Earth Warriors couldn't attack Beta as they ran the risk of hurting Espio too. What's worse, the other E-Robots were getting into position. This wasn't good.

"No…not…done yet…" Espio grunted .

All eyes turned towards him as Espio slid one hand free of the robot's grasp and perched it on Beta's single eye.

" _Shatter-point!"_ shouted Espio.

There was a brilliant flash of light followed by a huge explosion. The Earth warriors collectively gasped in shock as the dust cleared.

"Espio no…" muttered Vector.

"There, now that's more like it," said Shadow.

"What was he thinking…" deplored Knuckles with genuine remorse at Espio's sacrifice.

"Is he…" Tails dejectedly began.

Beta was reduced to mere scrap metal and Espio lay on the floor writhing in terrible pain. He had used up too much energy destroying Beta at the cost of his own well being, plus the poison was rubbing more salt in the wound. Marine rushed over to his aid. He was barely breathing at all and Marine could feel his life slipping away. Marine trembled on the spot, fighting back any tears to little avail.

"Guys…he's not gonna make it…" she whimpered.

Watching his noble sacrifice from back at the Kyuuri Estate, Espio's loyal pet Chao was beyond heartbroken.

" **ESPIO! NO!"** she wailed, desperately hugging on the screen of the video. "Tell me it's not true! Please Espio! Get up! Please Espio! Espio!"

Milk burst into tears, shaking her head and repeatedly hit the screen in frustration. Rouge clutched her head tightly also on the verge of tears. No matter what she had said about Espio, no matter what bad things he'd done, even if they weren't together anymore…his selfless sacrifice pierced her heart sharper than any sword ever could. Unlike Sonic, Espio went up against the Mobians knowing he stood little chance…but he did anyway. And now he was going to die because of it. Rouge couldn't withstand it and felt warm tears stream down her face. Everyone watching, looked on solemnly.

"You must've had a feeling something like this would happen, huh…?" bewailed Marine. "That's why you insisted on going before me…Damn it!"

Marine felt a single tear-drop escape and fall on Espio's body. This was no silly fairy tale. Nothing could save Espio now.

"Why did you have to go and sacrifice yourself like that!?" shrieked Marine. "You stupid jerk! What am I supposed to tell Milk and Rouge, huh?"

"What in the hell was that dumbass thinking!?" sneered Omega impatiently. "Did he really think he could defeat Beta like that without getting himself killed? What a fool! He got what he deserved. Come on! Let's go to the next round!"

"Calm down Omega," retorted Shadow. "Let's give them a moment to remove this trash from the battlefield."

Marine stood up. She turned to face the Mobians with pure hatred in her eyes.

"How **dare** you…" she choked. "Everyone stand back..."

She looked at the near dead Espio one last time.

"Okay buddy... This one's for you. I won't let you down." Marine locked eyes with the Mobians again. "I'm gonna make them pay…You hear me you bastards! You're gonna **pay**!"

The Mobians looked back with curiosity as they noticed her become enveloped in a bright white aura. Marine clenched her fists, gritted her teeth and begun charging up her ultimate attack. If she messed up this technique then it would kill her on the spot. Regardless of the risk she was willing to put everything on the line and had total confidence in her attack. This would be everything or nothing.

 _The Mobians have claimed their first casualty: Espio. Anguished with the loss of her friend, Marine's fury is about to be unleashed._

 _Next Sonic Chaos Z!_

* * *

 **Whoo, was this one a doozy. Unlike the source material I've decided to make Espio a little more useful in the series overall compared to the desert bandit he's based on.**

 **That goes for all the characters. While the plot on a whole will largely stay the same, the non-Mobians characters will be a lot of more useful and at the very least will have a few more achievements under their belt compared to the original.**

 **Kudos to you if you got all the Sonic naming references.**


	10. Hang On Charmy! Vector's Deadly Assault!

**Took a lot of liberties with this one. Let's see the subversions to our expectations.  
**

* * *

Marine flared with blistering fury, her aura growing brighter and wilder all the while. She could feel her the blood rushing through her veins as the attack drained her of a lot of vitality. Spreading her arms outwards, little bubbles of QI energy began forming around her and she secreted them within her hands forming two glowing balls of light.

Knuckles and Vector caught on to what she was doing and took a few steps back. Marine then combined the two shining orbs into a singular larger orb floating above her head, spinning rapidly with increasing power.

"That does it!" she said. "Now you two freaks are going to get a taste of your own hell!"

Shadow was not intimated in the slightest and ordered Zeta to attack, who then took aim with it's cannons. Marine then threw her opponents off guard by shoving her attack orb right into the ground where it disappeared. It didn't even make any damage to the surface.

"What the…" began Omega. "What kind of attack is that?"

Omega got his answer as the second Marine clenched her fist, several energy beams burst from underneath the ground, right underneath each robot and Mobian. Marine's _Hyper Volcano_ technique worked by the gathering of energy, dispersing it into smaller units underground and then erupting underneath the unsuspecting opponent.

The area was filled with smoke and debris as each of the opponents were struck. As the air cleared, and broken rocks rained down, the broken pieces of Delta, Epsilon and Zeta lay scattered on the ground. Marine smiled whilst panting in satisfaction.

"Awesome shot!" lauded Vector. "You're doing great!"

"Whoa nice job!" added Tails and Charmy cheered vector on.

Even Knuckles seemed to be a little impressed. Marine breathed heavily.

"Yeah," she managed. "But I'll be a lot better once we've finished off the-"

Before Marine could say another word, Zeta's still active torso detached from its damaged spider-like body and flew towards the unsuspecting Tails. The fox boy gasped as it sprung towards him in a _kamikaze_ like attack. Thankfully, Zeta was halted in its tracks due to the quick intervention of Knuckles, who grabbed hold of its head.

"Die," he spat.

Knuckles punched his fist clean through the robot's body before swinging it into the air. Before it could even react, Knuckles finished it off with a _Kiai-Cannon_ _blast._ Afterwards, Zeta's dust fell to the ground slowly. Marine breathed a sigh of relief, that Tails hadn't gotten hurt too.

"Well done Knuckles," thought Vector. "You know I gotta admit, I like that guy a heck of a lot more now that he's on our side."

"That was a close one." said Tails. "Thanks Mr Knuckles!"

"You can keep your thanks; I wasn't trying to save you…" replied Knuckles, disheartening him. "It was just a warm up. The real fight hasn't even started yet. You better watch your own back from now on!"

Shadow laughed from behind the dust as the two Mobian warriors walked out completely unscathed.

"That's the best they can do?" laughed Omega."This is gonna be a breeze!"

The Earth Warriors were astounded; Marine's attack took out at least two of their robots, powerful in their own right and yet they brushed it off as a mere annoyance! They truly were on a completely different level to Mighty.

"If you're finished warming up, why don't we get started?" asked Shadow. "There's no need for us to drag this out."

"Don't worry," chuckled Omega. "This will only hurt a lot!"

"They took that hit like it was nothing!" thought Vector. "They're not even breathing hard!"

"Darn it…" coughed Marine. "I put everything I had into that blast… So _this_ is what Mobians are like?"

The Mobians collectively laughed at her plight, advancing closer as the others took up their fighting poses.

"Let me go at 'em Shadow! I'm tired of playing around!" asserted Omega.

"Sure Omega. Knock yourself out," responded Shadow. "However…"

Omega didn't like conditions.

"I'm not finished with the Nocturnian so let him live for now," said Shadow. "Once he tells us about the Chaos Emeralds, you can do whatever you want."

"Well in that case, I may as well take my time and enjoy myself," droned Omega. "So I'll start with…"

Omega zoomed his eyes on the worn out Marine.

"…You pipsqueak!" he shouted, rushing in for the kill.

Omega used is jet-booster for more speed as Marine steadied herself in defense.

"Not so fast!" growled Knuckles, suddenly appearing before her.

Knuckles launched a _Spiral-Uppercut_ to Omega's face, dis-joining it a little. Before Knuckles could follow it up, Omega was out of sight again disorientating Knuckles. As if that wasn't enough, Omega spin-kicked him in the gut, careening him into a boulder, so hard that it shattered.

"Mr Knuckles, are you okay!?" asked Tails.

"It looks like this is gonna be more fun than I thought!" said Omega as he landed before Tails and snapped his head back into position.

"What?" thought Knuckles, getting up from the ground.

Omega converted his arms, swapping his hands for two over sized cannons and began charging up. His power was so incredible it even began to cause a minor earthquake. Pebbles started to scatter away from his force as if they too were scared. Charmy flew in front of Omega and extended his arms.

"Man I've never felt power like this before…" cursed Vector.

"It's no use!" Charmy whimpered. "My Hypno-spores don't work on machines!"

"Oh no…this is bad…" cursed Marine.

Tails looked at his mentor for hope but Knuckles looked furious with the situation.

"I expected these Mobians to be strong, but _this_ …this is ridiculous!" he thought.

From the Special Stage, Sonic could sense his friends in danger but no matter how angry it made him, he knew he was doing all he could right now.

"Just a little bit longer guys! I'm on my way!" he mentally assured.

Back on the battlefield, Omega was close to reaching his maximum output. So he summoned a lightning bolt from the sky to reach that peak even faster. Charmy bravely flew around him dispersing his _Stun-Spore_ attack though it failed to have any effect.

"Charmy get back!" urged Vector.

Omega simply shot laser beams from his eyes to swat away the annoying inspect, throwing him against a boulder. Extending a single arm cannon, Omega chose his target: Vector. He let loose the incredible energy beam that raced towards the crocodile. Vector put all his energy into his left fist, and deflected the attack with the back of his hand. It took a gargantuan effort from him but he successfully avoided it thus blasting a nearby plateau to pieces.

"Vector! Watch out!" yelled Knuckles. "Get out of the way!

But I was too late; Omega had fired a second shot from his other arm cannon and shot it's beam at Vector's vulnerable extended hand. There was no time for him to dodge. Vector howled in agony as he felt his hand dissipate to nothingness.

"Vector! Noooo!" screamed Charmy.

Still groaning in pain, Vector steadied himself and focused all his efforts on sealing the wound lest he bleed to death. Omega whirred in satisfaction.

"Hmph, how fragile they are…" lamented Shadow sarcastically.

"Hahaha! Oh, excuse me!" Omega mocked him. "Has anyone seen my arm? You can't miss it, it's green!"

Those few seconds of taunting were all Vector needed to recover. He dashed into the sky, confronting Omega from that distance.

"I'll kill you!" he threatened, charging up and attack.

Vector threw an explosive orb at him but Omega returned fire with a devastating laser beam that collided with it. Before Vector could blink, Omega was right next to him and kicked him to the ground.

Charmy wailed at the sight of his friend severely injured. Vector crashed to the ground with a thud and writhed in pain. Omega descended downwards.

"No!" cried Tails. "Somebody stop this!"

Marine looked back at her friends and then back at Omega.

"I've had enough! I'm coming Vector!" she shouted, running towards Omega.

"No wait!" warned Knuckles. "Stop you can't save him!"

"Just shut up!" snapped Marine, continuing to run.

"Mind your own business!" said Omega, blasting the ground near Marine.

Though she avoided the shots, their impact was enough to throw her off her feet. Even Knuckles and Tails had to shield themselves from the exploding debris. Marine opened her eyes in total awe as she was lying before an insanely deep hole.

"He left a crater so deep, I can't even see the bottom!" grunted Knuckles. "The amount of energy that must've taken is…"

Knuckles didn't finish but they'd all caught on. Vector despite his wounds still forced himself to get up, to little avail.

"Omega you might want to look behind you…" said Shadow nonchalantly.

The next thing Omega knew was that Charmy had quickly latched onto his back, where his arms could not reach. Not that he ever had to scratch himself there to begin with…

"Charmy!" called Vector.

"Why you little…" cursed Omega, trying to shake him off. "Get off me!"

Charmy firmly held on and began charging incredible power into his stinger.

"What the…?" noticed Omega. "Hey!"

Getting an idea, he slammed his back repeatedly onto the nearby plateaus, hoping smash Charmy off. Omega hit them with enough force to turn them into rubble but despite the intense thrashing, Charmy refused to let go.

"Let go! Charmy stop it!" pleaded Vector. "That's enough! Get off! Get out of the way!"

Charmy ignored him and continued to charge up his stinger as Omega kept slamming even harder but it was ultimately a fruitless effort. Charmy had decided to put all his focus into one final attack even if it would cost him his life.

"Vector! Listen to me…" spoke Charmy telepathically. "Thanks Vector…for everything,"

"What!? What the heck are you talking about!?" demanded Vector. "Charmy! Get out of there! Now! While you still have the chance!"

Omega could feel Charmy's grip loosening and figured one last crash would finally get him off. So Omega flew up high into the air and it was clear he would not land softly.

"Please, don't forget about me…" Charmy continued. "I'm gonna miss you friend."

Charmy's tail was gleamed with a piercing red glow.

"Charmy…" Vector muttered, in disbelief. "Hold on! Don't do something you're going to regret!"

Omega began diving towards the ground.

"Goodbye Vector…" Charmy whispered. "Whatever you do…don't end up like me okay?"

"Charmy! Don't!" yelled Vector, begging his friend to stop.

Omega was inches from reaching the surface when he exploded in mid-air. Charmy's fully powered _Oblivion Stinger_ had cost him everything he had. Smoke and dust surrounded the area once more. Vector was speechless, to the point of mentally shutting down for a few moments, lamenting his best friend's sacrifice.

"Nooo!" hollered Vector, trying to withhold his rage.

"Good thinking," grinned Knuckles. "Sacrificing himself to kill the Mobian. A little extreme but it got results."

Tails was ready to breakdown in tears not only because of Charmy's sacrifice but his mentor's cold attitude only made him feel even worse. As if things weren't already bad enough, from out from the smoke, stepped Omega. He was steaming hot, missing an arm and sparks flew out of one side but he was otherwise completely functional.

"Well that's one less Earthling I have to kill," he sneered. "Gave me a little scratch, I see?"

Omega picked up Gamma's broken arm and attached it in place of his lost appendage.

"Here's the difference you fools…" said Omega. "When I get hurt? It's a simple repair. But when _you_ get hurt?"

Omega demonstrated his full control over Gamma's arm, mechanically sewn to his body.

"You _bleed_ …" he stressed.

"But…that's…impossible…" stuttered Marine. "How is he still alive when Charmy…Charmy's dead…He sacrificed himself for nothing!"

"He's really gone…" cursed Vector. "He's gone forever! He's already been wished back to life once before! Now nothing can bring him back! Not even the Chaos Emeralds!"

Vector was more furious than he'd ever been in his whole life.

"You!" he growled at Omega. "You're going to pay for this!"

Omega just laughed in his face.

"Fine!" he replied. "If you still don't realize how pointless it is to battle a Mobian, much less a mechanized one, I'll give you one more demonstration! Unfortunately it'll be the last thing you ever see."

"I…I don't believe this!" said Marine. "What are we supposed to do? He's too strong for us! There's no way we can beat this guy!"

"Charmy…" lamented Vector.

"If you're worried about your friend, don't worry!" taunted Omega. "You'll be joining him soon enough!"

"I'll…kill you…" growled Vector, clenching his remaining fist. "You won't get away with what you've done!"

The enraged Vector roared and rushed towards Omega, attacking him with a barrage of punches even though he was down to just one hand. Typically, Vector was no match for Omega's superior speed and durability. All Omega did was wait for Vector to tire himself out and then…sucker punch.

Vector was punched in the gut and flung into the air. However Vector, refused to give up, attacking Omega with a mighty _Hammer Punch_ and resuming his assault of punches. It still had no effect on the superior Omega, who used his non-battered arm to bludgeon Vector to the ground.

"At this rate, Vector won't be able to hold out much longer…" whispered Marine. "Unless _I_ jump in there and even the odds!"

"No Marine," ordered Knuckles. "We'll all strike together when he moves to make an attack. Not before."

Marine didn't like the idea of using Vector as a meat shield but there was an element of truth to Knuckles' logic; Marine knew she stood little chance on her own.

"It's the best chance we have," stressed Knuckles, knowing he was right. "You got that, Tails?"

Tails didn't like what he was hearing one bit however he feebly nodded in agreement. Not just because Knuckles was right but also because he knew better than to argue with Knuckles.

"That sounds like it might work…" Shadow pointed out, much to the trio's shock. "For _your_ sake I hope it does."

Knuckles faced Shadow, totally astonished that his opponent was actually encouraging them.

"Keep your eyes on the battle field," smirked Shadow. "You'll only have one shot at this."

"Ha! So you think…" grinned Knuckles. "But it won't be too much longer before Sonic gets here. He'll wipe that smirk off your face."

That name certainly did change Shadow's expression.

"Oh, I'm terrified…" said Shadow sarcastically. "But also curious. This guy's your secret weapon?"

"Wouldn't you like you know…" laughed Knuckles smugly.

Omega had finished toying with Vector and punched him into a plateau. He peeled off it's rough edges and landed on the ground near the body of Espio.

"I'm started to get bored just tossing you around..." began Omega. "Aren't you? Why don't we just end this?"

Omega rose into the sky again as Vector lay on the ground, powerless to fight back and powerless to escape.

"Now **die**!" yelled Omega, charging downwards for the finishing blow.

"Everyone!" Knuckles ordered. "Go now! Scatter!"

"Right!" confirmed Marine.

Tails however was numb with fear. Knuckles and Marine dashed separate ways into the sky leaving Tails behind. Omega charged further

"Say _hi_ to your little runt friend for me!" Omega sneered.

"What?" noticed Vector.

Before Omega could turn around, Knuckles whacked him with a supercharged _Hammer Punch_ right in the torso, flinging him through the air. Not giving Omega even a fraction of a second to recover, Marine spinballed into his back, vaulting him downwards with a one two punch. This was proof that Omega was not invincible as he was temporarily left vulnerable after such a devastating attack.

"Tails! Do it! Hit 'em now!" ordered Knuckles.

But somehow Tails just couldn't do it. He had the power, he had the training but he didn't have the courage. Just staring at the monster that brutally killed two of his friends was frightening him. The fear was consuming him. He wanted to cry out but he couldn't even manage that. He just stood there paralyzed with fear.

"No Tails!" yelled Knuckles, trying to snap him out of it.

"Now's your chance!" urged Marine.

Omega crackled with electricity, further cementing Tails' fears.

"I can't! I'm too scared!" he whimpered.

Omega twisted his head at Tails and that was enough to scare him out of his frozen state. Tails ran away screaming, totally forgetting the crisis of the situation.

"You're worthless!" spat Knuckles.

"Tails!" cursed Marine.

Though they were still weak from their previous attack, Knuckles and Marine put further strain on their finite pool of strength to unleash a twin laser beam attack to finish Omega off. Omega finally recovered and dodged the beams by a hair length's difference. Another explosion on the ground occurred as a result.

"It didn't work! We were just a second late!" exclaimed Marine.

Omega positioned himself in the air.

"I'll give you some credit for that one. It was a good move," Omega praised them. "You two almost had me there for a second. So…I've decided to change up the order I'm going to kill you in. Now say goodbye!"

Marine and Knuckles entered their combat stances, bracing themselves for impact. On the ground, was Tails almost in tears.

"I can't do it…" he bemoaned. "I'm sorry! I just can't!"

At the Altar of the Emeralds, Tikal was visibly distraught with yet another revelation.

"What is it that's bothering you Tikal?" asked Mr Babylon.

"It appears my life will soon be coming to an end Mr Babylon…" lamented Tikal. "My death is upon me… I can feel it."

Mr Babylon looked white as a ghost, but deep down he knew this was inevitable. Tikal had foreseen it long ago.

"But if that's true…" began Mr Babylon. "That means…"

"That Knuckles will be killed," Tikal picked up where he left off. "And so will everyone else."

"But…what about Sonic?"

"I still cannot sense his presence. And he is running out of time…"

Back on the battlefield, Vector struggled to drive out the guilt of his companion's senseless sacrifice. Despite his injuries he forced himself to stand up, thinking of all the good times they'd shared.

"Charmy…" he thought. "We faced so many challenges together. We've always come through though…together. But this time… Charmy…I'm sorry my little brother…"

It was probably a stupid idea but with nothing left to lose Vector decided he would make one last stand. To his shock, something grabbed hold of his leg. Vector twisted around to see the lifeless body of Espio, twitch some more.

"Espio? You're still alive?" Vector silently exclaimed.

Most of his bones were probably broken, his body was likely filled to the brim with toxins and his blood pressure and breathing was only slightly better than a zombie yet he still clung on to this world with everything he had. Despite his severed hand, Vector took Espio in his arms.

"Hang in there buddy! Just a little longer! We'll get you out of here somehow."

Espio coughed and barely shook his head. Using the last of his strength, Espio handed Vector his _kunai_ and closed his eyes, finally dying in his arms. at last Vector understood. No matter what he had to endure, Espio fought against the poison working through his veins even in his battered state all the while imbuing his _kunai_ with his power. What happened to Charmy was horrible but at least it was over quickly…for Espio, it had been slow and painful. And his last action was to put all his faith into his friend.

"Espio…" muttered Vector, with his throat going dry.

Omega carried on taunting the others from the air, having totally forgotten about Vector.

"Too bad you won't live long enough to learn from this," laughed Omega. "So which one of you wants to die first? Anybody but _you_ Nocturnian! I won't kill you just yet…not until you've told us everything you know about the Chaos Emeralds."

Vector placed Espio down gently and took the _kunai_ firmly in his remaining hand. He could feel the incredible energy Espio had packed into it as his legacy. In a way, he was still aiding him in this fight.

"Espio…Charmy…I won't let your sacrifices be in vain," Vector assured himself. "I promise! I don't care what happens to me anymore, but I'll rest easy knowing I've sent one of these Mobians to hell!"

Vector grasped the _kunai_ tightly in his fist and infused his own mana into it, strengthening it further. There was no point in using his powers in small bursts. He needed to concentrate every last bit into one single attack. This was going to be everything or nothing! Vector began charging up…

And then with his remaining but still powerful arm, he swung with all his might to launch the kunai at Omega.

" _ **Chaotic Inferno!"**_ roared Vector.

Omega had let his guard down and consequently felt the _kunai_ penetrate into his body, right where his heart would be…if he had one, figuratively and literally. The attack didn't end there as Vector clenched his fists, causing the _kunai_ to explode, releasing the vast amount of energy both Espio and Vector had stored within it. Omega was detonated like a firework in the sky. The explosion was so bright and powerful even Shadow felt the need to shield his eyes with a single arm. When the light and smoke cleared, Omega was finally reduced to scrap metal all over the ground, as Vector collapsed to the ground panting heavily as a result. Shadow was unmoved.

"No way…" muttered Marine bewildered.

"He was strong on the outside but weak from the inside…" added Knuckles. "Seems Espio's _kunai_ gave Vector the edge he needed. How noble of him."

"Does this mean…" began Marine.

"Of course not!" boomed a metallic voice.

All eyes turned towards Omega's severed head, lying before Shadow and still functioning!

"Remember what I said before!?" he sneered. "I can't be killed the same way as you meat bags! As a machine, I can be rebuilt 1000 times! As long as my brain is intact, I'm invincible!"

"This guy's like a cockroach!" cursed Knuckles. "No matter how many times you squash him, he just keeps coming back. Hmph, I guess we'll just have to be thorough!"

Knuckles wasted no time and hastily powered up his _Maximum Heat Knuckle_ attack _._ Having perfected it over the last few months he only needed a fraction of time to power it up compared to when he faced Mighty. Despite all his trash talk, Omega was indeed quite vulnerable at this point and wouldn't stand a chance against a full on blast.

"Shadow!" demanded Omega. "Please, help me! I can't move like this. Help me!"

Shadow looked down at his comrade for a while before smiling.

"Of course," he said.

"Thanks boss!" laughed Omega.

While they were talking amongst themselves, Knuckles changed his plan slightly and shot his attack beam at Shadow hoping to catch him off guard. Shadow however…had been anticipating it.

Shadow kicked Omega's head like a soccer ball, into his palm.

"Shadow! What're you…"

Omega never finished the sentence; Shadow used him as a shield against the Maximum Heat Knuckle. Not that Shadow needed a shield to begin with or that Omega's head was that effective at the task. But it was the easiest way to snag his master chip without getting his hands dirty.

"Curse you Shadow….!" screamed Omega as he was incinerated to dust.

Shadow smiled smugly with the master chip in his palm. The Earth warriors looked on horrified at the ruthless black hedgehog's actions.

"He…he's…psycho!" stammered Marine. "He actually helped us kill his own partner!"

"Why are you so surprised?" asked Knuckles. "These Mobians are the most ruthless monsters I've ever seen. Why put it past them?"

"Oh please!" said Shadow. "Save me the speeches. If you hadn't done the job for me, I would've eventually killed him myself. That fool was nothing but an insubordinate pest whom I was stuck with. But don't worry, I already have a replacement…"

This came as a shock.

"What…what's he talking about?" muttered Tails.

"Did I forget to mention?" quipped Shadow. "I have one last E-Robot. It's currently incomplete, however… Omega's master chip, will be the perfect final ingredient."

Inserting the chip into a metallic ball, Shadow tossed it into the air where it exploded to release the last robotic monstrosity. Accompanied by a brilliant flash of white, the robot entered the fray. It looked nothing like the previous bots, instead having a spherical yet humanoid design. It was mostly gray in color with patches of blue on its body, however the robo demonstrated the ability to change these colors depending on its current mode.

"Meet **E-121 Kai**!" said Shadow. "The most advanced E-Robot in existence. Thanks to the new chip, it possesses data on all of you and has a power level even greater than Omega did."

"Awaiting user input…" announced E-121.

Vector had gotten up and began quietly powering up an attack to snipe the enemy.

"E-121! Show them a sample of your power by destroying the Crocodile!"

"What the-"

Before the injured Vector could even twitch, E-121 charged towards him unleashing a huge explosion as they collided. Sounds of fighting could be heard but the air was too thick with soot and dirt to see anything. When the air cleared, only one of them stood. E-121 held Vector's lifeless body for all to see before tossing it behind him carelessly and walking towards Shadow.

"Permanent deletion confirmed," stated E-121.

Watching from the Kyuuri Estate, Rouge and company were beyond flabbergasted. Just when they thought they had a minor victory, it seemed they had only prolonged the inevitable as Vector was swiftly killed in the blink of an eye. Likewise the Earth Warriors were at a loss for words. Even after so many twists and turns and devastating truths, they still could not comprehend each astonishing revelation as it was revealed. After all their struggle, they had lost three teammates in the process of killing just one Mobian and consequently something just as bad took its place.

Tails looked at the body of Vector on the verge of tears. If only he had been stronger or even just braver he could've killed Omega when he had the opportunity and then maybe Vector might've had a chance too.

"What a fool!" laughed Shadow. "Really, he could've just stayed down and played dead. But no, he had to try and be all noble."

"Vector no…" began Marine. "You can't be dead too… You can't, we needed you… Everyone's dying and I don't know how to stop it…"

Marine stood blinking at the motionless Vector. Marine threw her head back and hollered skywards.

"HURRY SONIC! WE NEED YOUR HELP!"

Zooming across special stage, Sonic heard his friends pleas and was overwrought with so many emotions. Anger, frustration, regret, guilt, sadness… It was driving him insane. Yet he pressed on even faster at an even greater strain to his mental well being, for the sake of his friends.

"PLEASE SONIC!" Marine's wail echoed in his head.

"I'm coming guys!" he reassured though none heard him. " **I'm coming!** "

Back at the battlefield, something had intrigued Shadow.

"Sonic…" he repeated. "That name again…"

"Hostile life forms detected!" E-121 alerted Shadow. "Proceed with elimination?"

The Earth warriors tensed at the sound of that while Tails actually began to weep a little.

"Hold on! Wait!" ordered Shadow. "I want to ask them something first."

"Affirmative," complied the robot, as Shadow turned to face the Earth warriors.

"This _Sonic_ you keep babbling about," he addressed them. "He's _Terios_ isn't he?"

"Don't call him that!" demanded Marine. "He's Sonic now!"

Shadow couldn't help but laugh, at both the racoon's audacity and the ridiculousness of her demand.

"To think that Terios is your only hope; he died fighting Mighty!" said Shadow. "And Mighty wasn't half the fighter Omega was. What he could he possibly to against the two of us?"

"Sonic is stronger than he was before! You'll see. You're both dead meat when he gets here!" asserted Marine. "

"That's right," added Knuckles bitterly. "You shouldn't underestimate him."

"Oh, really?" grinned Shadow.

"We'd be inclined to believe your statement if the one you speak of was actually present." E-121 chipped in. "Highest probability is that he deserted you."

"That's my dad!" asserted Tails. "He'll be here and you'll be sorry! He's gonna be so big and strong you'll wish you never messed with us!"

"That so?" inquired Shadow. "Well that sounds interesting. I guess we can give our hero a little more time, right E-121?"

"Insufficient data cannot compute," responded the robot.

Shadow took something out of his pocket that resembled a tranquilizer dart/Egg-timer hybrid. Shadow swung it towards the Earth Warriors, aiming for the ground in front of them. It perfectly rooted itself there as the liquid began to drain.

"As indicated by that timer, I'm giving you 1 hour," explained Shadow. "That's all he gets. After that, should Terios fail to show up, they are yours to destroy E-121."

"Affirmative," agreed the robot.

"Hmph, much better than Omega," thought Shadow. "If I told Omega to wait even ten minutes he'd probably have thrown a hissy fit. I was right to let that arrogant fool die. I should've done this sooner, whether he was Mobian or not…"

Sitting down comfortably on a flat surfaced boulder, Shadow turned his attention back to the Earth Warriors, or at least what was left of them: Marine, Knuckles and Tails.

"Terios won't be able to save you but he did just by you some more time. I've waited an entire year, what's one more hour to me? You however might want to cherish every last second… " stated Shadow.

Powerless to do anything but accept the Mobian's proposal the Earth Warriors regrouped. Tails sulked at his failure as Knuckles looked on disapprovingly.

"Come on," Marine told Knuckles. "It's not his fault. He's never been in a real fight before…"

"Yeah _obviously_ ," stressed the Echidna. "What a waste of time. I was a fool for expecting more out of you."

His mentor's words hurt Tails more than anything the Mobians had done to him so far. Tails felt more miserable, helpless and useless than he had ever felt in his whole life. Knuckles knew he probably had gone too far but what did it matter now? If Sonic didn't show up in time they were all as good as dead. Wait, Knuckles was actually depending on Sonic to save the day? Yep, the world really was coming to an end. It all made sense now.

"This is a problem," thought Knuckles. "If I'm right, that runt Shadow might be even stronger than all of his stupid robot friends. We barely managed to defeat them. Does Sonic truly stand a better chance?"

 _The clock is ticking! Will Sonic make it back to Earth in time? Next Sonic Chaos Z!_

* * *

 **One of the things that bothered me about the original story was that anyone who was not a Saiyan was practically useless in battle. I hope to fix that in this adaptation.**

 **So the Earth Fighters managed to kill one Mobian even if it cost them three of their own. Does that make Shadow and his mechanized ally any less dangerous? Of course not! They're just as dangerous as they're source material counterparts however it's just that the Earth Warriors are a little more crafty and know it takes more than brute power to win a fight.**

 **Next one will be up ASAP.**

 **If you enjoy this story please leave a review and feel free to critique me with some constructive criticism. It be great to find out more ways to improve.**


	11. Will Sonic make it? One hour remains!

All had gone quiet on the battlefield after Shadow had issued his demand. Sonic had one hour to arrive or else all would be lost. While Shadow sat down patiently, E-121 Kai obediently stood beside him. Things were not looking good for the Earth Warriors. Powerless to take any actions, all they could do now is wait…

"What is the purpose of waiting for the one called Terios?" inquired E-121.

This almost surprised Shadow. E-121 was programmed to be a loyal fighting machine however he behaved much like any sentient organic life form.

"Because," began Shadow. "As a traitor to the Mobian race he gets special treatment. You and I are going to savour doling out punishment on that fugitive. By making him watch his friends and loved ones _die_. Right in front of him."

"Understood," affirmed E-121.

"And that'll be just a taste of what's to come," continued Shadow. Because he'll follow their lead, only much slower. He'll remember what it means to be a Mobian as he writhes in agony. After that not only will I be the last remaining Mobian but also the first to become immortal… When the time comes, leave Terios to me. You can annihilate the other three. But don't eliminate the Nocturnian until he tells us everything he knows about the Chaos Emeralds."

"Yes boss," agreed the robot.

Knuckles stared into the sky, looking for any signs of Sonic. Tails opened his mouth to say something but couldn't think of what to say.

"Hey uh," Marine broke the ice for him. "Why don't we get out of here while we still have the chance? We can't beat them. I say live to fight another day!"

"You imbecile." replied Knuckles. "Don't you get it? There won't _be_ another day for us or anyone else to fight these monsters. These freaks intend to eradicate all life on Earth!"

Marine couldn't argue with that.

"This is bad!" she muttered. "Come on Sonic, get here! You have to show these two monsters how much stronger you've gotten before it's too late! Hurry!"

On the Special stage, Sonic was close to reaching the end. He could feel it.

"Come on! Come on! Come on!" he urged himself.

Tikal could feel his presence reproaching too.

"That's it…" she said.

"Just hang in there guys! I'm on my way!" shouted Sonic.

Back on the battlefield things didn't seem to be getting better.

"Knuckles, Sonic isn't going to be here before the hour is up, dontcha' think?" inquired Marine with concern.

"Who knows…" said Knuckles. "Just in case, I suggest we use this time to figure out a way to inflict a little damage on them ourselves."

"Um I have an idea!" announced Tails. "We can use this time train! You and me can spar the way we've been doing-"

"-I've done what I can to train you and it was a waste of time!" interrupted Knuckles, turning his back. "Why are you even still here?"

"But you said…" Tails trailed off.

Giving up all hope, Tails walked away. Enemy or not, Marine didn't like Knuckles' attitude one bit.

"Knuckles?" said Marine.

Knuckles said nothing in response.

"Rise above it boy," he thought. "What you think you need you already have."

"Tails! It's okay," Marine assured him, still walking away. "Uh, you can't just leave! Tails!?"

And just like that, the nearby plateau to the right of Tails exploded, forcing him to fall backwards in fright.

"Halt!" ordered E-121. "You are not permitted to leave! Attempts to escape would be fatal."

Shadow found that most amusing. Tails however was not amused one bit.

"You bully!" cursed Tails. "You're nothing but a stupid walking garbage can!"

"As a matter of fact, you're right." whirred E-121. "You creatures are indeed garbage and I will be the one who disposes of you."

Shadow couldn't help but laugh at this. It seems there was still a little bit of Omega left in him. He had all of Omega's memories so it must be rubbing off on him.

All the commotion had attracted many news reporters who arrived in their helicopters, jeeps and such to get a glimpse of the action. The Kyuuri House camera droid however maintained its distance. Things were about to get ugly.

"Eliminate the reinforcements E-121!" ordered Shadow.

E-121 wasted no time, arming itself and heading out. Within no time, it had begun blasting their vehicles to pieces with ease. It happened so quickly the carnage was hardly noticeable. That didn't make it any less deadly. The few remaining reporters quickly began to flee as E-121 charged up his _ring of destruction_ technique. Consequently the surge of radio waves caused the camera droid to malfunction too.

Professor Pickle, Rouge the Bat, Chip, Milk and Amy looked bleakly as the computer screen displayed "SIGNAL LOST."

From her residence in the Astral Plane, Shahra was equally frustrated. She felt guilty over the fact it was her mistake that caused Sonic to be late but to be fair, if he went early without the proper training he wouldn't have stood a chance to begin with.

"It's taking forever! I thought he used to be the fastest thing alive!" she complained.

Kiki snarked something in his robotic voice that only Shahra could understand.

"Ha ha very funny," quipped Shahra. "But this is no time for a laugh track! The fate of the Earth hangs by a thread! Come on Sonic!"

The end was near.

"I see it!" shouted Sonic. "Yes I'm almost there!"

Sonic was close to the portal that brought him to this world when his journey first started. Tikal flinched in response to his presence on the floating island.

"You sense him Tikal?" asked Mr Babylon.

"Yes and if he hurries," replied Tikal. "He might just make it in time."

Shadow sat patiently on his seat totally relaxed. He opened his eyes once to glance at the timer.

"15 more minutes to go…" he pointed out. "If Terios decides not to show his face here, I'll be _very_ disappointed."

The Earth Warriors didn't like the sound of that.

"There is no other option for us," thought Knuckles. "At this point, it's all or nothing…"

What happened next happened so quickly it was practically a blur. In the Chaos Pool, Tikal sensed Sonic reaching the portal.

"That's it! Sonic's made it to the end!" she exclaimed.

"Hurry Tikal! There's no time to lose!" pleaded Mr Babylon.

Tikal punched both her fists together and entered the Spirit World as fast as she could through her Astral Projection powers. It put a grievous strain on her but she brushed it off like nothing in her desperation to reach Sonic immediately.

"Please don't fail me now!" said Sonic entering the portal.

The second he emerged on the other side, he saw Tikal floating before him in an endless void.

"Sonic! You've made it!" said Tikal.

"Tikal!" said Sonic elated.

"Quickly grab on!" urged Tikal.

"You got it!" said Sonic.

In a split second Sonic embraced her and she transported his spirit back to his frozen body as fast she could. For the first time in almost a year, Sonic's lifeless body re-awoke from suspended animation in the Chaos Pool. Manifesting his new armour, Sonic sprang to life feeling stronger than ever. Tikal rushed to see him.

"Alright! Time to face those Mobians!" affirmed Sonic. "This is what I've been training for!"

"Best of luck Sonic!" said Tikal. "Make us proud!"

Not wasting another second, Sonic sped off like the wind, gone in the blink of an eye. As he raced across Angel Island, he went came across the Hidden Palace where Omochao resided.

"Here he comes!" realized Omochao. "I can only imagine how worn out the poor guy must feel."

Omochao dashed outside to see Sonic approaching.

"Hey Omochao!" called Sonic.

"Hi!" he yelled back.

"Can you please help me out?" asked Sonic.

"Of course!" assured Omochao. "How about my last two Gold Rings! Heads up!"

Omochao tossed him the precious _Gold Rings_ and Sonic spin-jumped once in the air to catch them before continuing his pace.

"You're the best! Thanks!" shouted Sonic.

"No problem!" replied Omochao. "Give 'em a good thrashing for me!"

As Sonic pressed on as fast as he could, Mr Babylon zoomed beside him on his flying carpet.

"Hop on Sonic! I'll take you there!" said Mr Babylon, gesturing at his flying carpet.

Sonic wasn't fond of low budget flights and preferred to run but he needed to save his strength so he gratefully complied.

"Thanks Mr Babylon!" he said getting on. "Whoa! So that's the Mobians huh? I can already sense their power from here. Hang on guys! I'm coming!"

The carpet was almost as fast as he was and before long they had left the edges of Angel Island. But they still had quite a far journey to travel to the battlefield.

Meanwhile, the timer finally ran out as it droned an awful buzzing sound. Shadow silenced it by zapping it to dust.

"Time is up!" said Shadow, getting up from his seat.

"No…" cursed Marine.

"Looks like your little champion isn't coming to the rescue," Shadow taunted. "Is he afraid?"

"He's not afraid!" Tails spat back. "My dad will be here any minute now! You'll see!"

"Damn it, what the heck is taking him so long?" said a frustrated Marine.

"Come on, don't do this to us Sonic…" thought Knuckles.

"It is time," whirred E-121. "I will destroy you now."

E-121 began to slowly advance forwards.

"We've got one shot against him and that's assuming things go smoothly…" said Knuckles under his breath.

Tails and Marine perked their ears to hear what he had to say. Knuckles began to explain the plan.

"We're playing for keeps here, so listen and listen _well_. Marine, you're the decoy. Do whatever it takes to draw his attention away from me. When the opportunity presents itself, I'll make a go for the robot's only weakness. Its power supply, I've located where it is."

"Right," affirmed Marine.

"It won't kill him instantly, I'm sure but it should definitely weaken him. Then…Tails that's when you charge him with everything you got!"

"Right!" said Tails bravely. "A-And I promise I won't run away this time!"

"I should hope not," replied Knuckles. "Remember, right now the fate of the world rests in our hands, understood? You've got to believe in yourself. Push aside those childish doubts and you'll tap into a power even greater than mine!"

It was strange hearing Knuckles of all people say such things but he was likely saying them to achieve a certain effect. Regardless Tails certainly felt a newfound sense of courage and determination surge over him.

"I can do this…" Tails mentally assured himself.

For a brief moment, the trio locked eyes with the metal monstrosity that awaited them.

"Right, here goes!" said Marine as she recklessly charged towards her opponent

"You have some nerve…" buzzed E-121.

Tails tensed nervously while Shadow watched with interest.

"Please take the bait…" thought Knuckles.

E-121 charged up for an attack as Marine rushed towards him. Then at the last second, instead of attacking Marine just collapsed on the ground before E-121 completely defenseless.

"What in blazes are you-"

In the blink of an eye Knuckles appeared and whacked E-121 squarely in the face, throwing him off guard. Before he had time to recover, Knuckles vaulted himself over him and used his other fist to smash through the robot's back and ripped out circuitry.

"Why you…" E-121 droned.

"Tails! Now!" shouted Knuckles.

"Right!" replied Tails, going for the finisher.

"Nice attempt," said E-121 before bashing Knuckles hard on the skull.

A horrified Tails stopped dead in his tracks, as Knuckles was stunned to the spot as the incredible wave of pain surged through his skull.

"Mr Knuckles…no…" whimpered Tails.

"But lucky for me, you missed all vital components," concluded E-121.

"All of them…!?" choked Knuckles, beginning to collapse.

"No," E-121 grabbed hold of him. "You cannot die yet. Not until you've answered my master's questions about the Chaos Emeralds."

"This…this isn't happening…" stuttered Marine.

Shadow laughed at her helplessness.

"Don't tell me that was your big strategy…" said Shadow. "E-121 is one of the strongest fighting robots in the universe, there's no way he'd have such an obvious weakness."

"He was your best?" question E-121. "What a shame… It didn't take much to defeat him at all."

E-121 threw Knuckles' limp unconscious body before the quivering Tails.

"Mr Knuckles! You have to get up!" Tails begged him. "Come on! Shake it off!

"Yeah, kid," whirred E-121. "Hate to break it to you but I think your buddy is beyond pep talks. You might want to forget about him for a moment because I've got plans for you."

If E-121 was trying to frighten Tails…it was working. He swallowed hard as E-121 confronted him.

"Don't sell yourself short," E-121 continued. "You're Terios' son right? That means you have Mobian blood coursing through those veins. So I'm counting on you to give me a run for my money."

Tails was paralyzed with fear until E-121 struck him so hard he crashed against a plateau.

"Get up!" demanded E-121. "No one said you could die. I'm just warming up."

Tails dug his fingers into the dirt as he pulled himself off the ground. No longer afraid, Tails stood boldly. E-121 charged right at him until Marine spin-kicked him in the head again, followed by an uppercut to ensure some damage.

E-121 lost interest in Tails and began to pursue Marine with a barrage of attacks. Having learned his movement pattern, Marine focused her efforts on dodging and thus was able to avoid getting hit.

"Ah…" said Shadow. "Someone's got a few tricks up their sleeve…"

"Oh you like that?" grinned Marine. "Well you're gonna love this."

Marine pulled out her secret weapon…a boomerang? It didn't look that special but Marine knew exactly how to use it. This technique was totally untested considering she'd just made it up, would probably kill her if she backfired and would cost a lot of energy but it was everything or nothing now. She raised it in the air and began spinning it up to high speeds.

The Boomerang spun faster and faster until it was nothing more than a blur of light, pulsating crackles of energy every so often. E-121 thought nothing of it and went in for the kill. When Marine smirked in satisfaction, Shadow knew something was wrong.

"Doomerang…disk!" yelled Marine as she swung the circular monstrosity.

"Is that supposed to scare me?" challenged E-121 continuing his assault.

"No E-121! Dodge it!" ordered Shadow wisely.

E-121 complied _almost_ in the nick of time, as the powered up boomerang sliced cleanly through his head, cutting off half of his face. The boomerang continued its journey further until it exploded in a far-off plateau. E-121 was damaged but still functioning as sparks flew out of the side of his face.

"That imbecile…" muttered Shadow. "A second later and he would've been sliced in half."

"Damn it!" cursed Marine. "My aim wasn't good enough…"

Despite being a robot, E-121 didn't seem to take the injury lightly.

"I can't…compute…I can't…read power levels anymore…How…how dare you!" cursed E-121.

And so. It was as if in that mere moment, E-121 had finally learned how to emote. As if all the emotions he could not fully comprehend had suddenly all snapped into place. Now a mechanical monstrosity no different to Omega had emerged. He roared in frustration before charging up another energy blast attack.

"Counter this!" said E-121.

Marine tried her best to deflect the attack with what little time she had but it was too strong. She was thrown right off her feet into the air.

"Say goodbye!" shouted E-121, ready to fire again.

But before he could unleash the attack, he was shot from behind by none other than Knuckles, who stood clutching his head. Shadow just laughed at E-121's expense.

"What's wrong E-121?" he asked. "Bite off more than you can chew?"

"Mobian trash!" spat Knuckles. "It would not be smart to underestimate me!"

"Don't you tell me what to do!" threatened E-121. "I was going to wait since we needed to pry the whole Chaos Emerald secret out of you but now I'm going to beat you within an inch of your life! Cocky organic bastard!"

"Cocky? Me? You have _no_ idea!" retorted Knuckles, before sensing an incredible power surge from the distance. "Huh!? What's that power? It's tremendous! And yet it's emanating from such a great distance! How could it possibly be so strong?"

Shadow frowned at the sound of that.

"I can feel it too!" beamed Tails, with tears in eyes. "That's my dad! I just know it is! He's finally here!"

"Yep there's no doubt about it…" smiled Marine from the ground. "Sonic's coming…"

"And most importantly," added Knuckles. "Sonic will be _ready_!"

Shahra telepathically encouraged Sonic from her residence.

"Hurry it up big guy! You're almost there! Just a bit further now…"

"Well it's about damn time!" said Knuckles. "Another minute and we'd all be finished… No one ever said punctuality was Sonic's strong suit but I oughta smack him for making us wait!"

"He's real close!" announced Tails. "Come on dad! We're over here dad! Hurry up! I knew he would come!"

"Just in time…" coughed Marine.

"Is it actually possible for you worms to somehow actually detect Terios' presence?" said Shadow, reengaging his scouter. "Or are you bluffing me? We'll see."

The moment Shadow set the Scouter to scan it went crazy… The numbers were rising more wildly than he'd ever seen in a long time. For the first time, Shadow was truly fearful of its reading.

"Okay there they are!" said Sonic. "I'll go on ahead from here! Thanks Mr Babylon!"

Sonic jumped off and sped through the air into the distance.

"Good luck Sonic!" said Mr Babylon, watching him disappear.

Shadow still couldn't believe his Scouter.

"Shadow!" said E-121. "I can't detect readings anymore! Are they just trying to buy some time or are we finally going to see some real action?"

"I don't know if it's Terios but something IS on the way…" said Shadow. "Whatever it is, we should see for ourselves in approximately four minutes. And if it's him his power level exceeds **5000**!"

" **5000**!?" repeated E-121. "That's impossible!"

"Enough!" said Shadow clenching his fist. "Play time is over! Eliminate them now! We can't risk having all four of them team up on us. They might prove to be an issue. I want their corpses to be the first thing he sees!"

"What!?" growled Knuckles.

Marine just grunted in agony while Tails elation faded as quickly as it came.

"But Shadow, what about the Chaos Emeralds?" inquired E-121.

"The Nocturnian is of no use to us anymore…" replied Shadow. "Let's just say I have a hunch that if we put his home world next on the list of planets to conquer, we'll get answers. Funny, until today I had always assumed the Chaos Emeralds were just a fairy tale. But if Terios has been brought back to life, we know there's more to them then rumor. Don't we now?"

"Yes we do," agreed E-121. "So red guy, you want to be first?"

Knuckles didn't say anything and simply entered his combat stance.

"No Knuckles! Let _me_!" asserted Tails bravely. "You just get out of there and I'll find away to keep this guy busy, while we wait for Sonic!"

"What!?" Knuckles couldn't believe what the usually shy little boy was saying.

"If you die then Tikal dies too and the Chaos Emeralds will be completely useless!" explained Tails. "We cannot let that happen!"

"Haha, now what kind of nonsense is that!?" snarked Knuckles. "You expect me to let you go head to head with this brute all on your own?"

"If that's what the brat wants!" agreed E-121. "Let's go!"

"Damn it!" cursed Knuckles, knowing Tails was right.

E-121 raced off towards the young vulpine who looked terrified. At that moment, Tails decided to make a gamble. Either his hidden power would protect him from the robots rampage or he would be annihilated. But the thoughts of his father, his friends sacrifices and the fate of the planet kept him strong. Closing his eyes Tails concentrated.

Winding up for a high powered laser blast, before seconds from firing Tails shot E-121 first by unleashing a torrent of devastating power. As it hit him, E-121 detonated on the spot like a mini supernova, causing a brilliant white explosion. Both Knuckles and Shadow were awestruck by the boy's sudden burst of power. Tails stood panting wearily as E-121's lay inside a body of fire. Raising one thin metallic hand skywards, E-121 slowly limped out of the flames.

After shedding his exterior, his metallic charred endoskeleton stepped out the fire like a demon from the underworld. Sure he was damaged but after shedding his exterior, he had traded the bulk of his power for agility. He was every bit as dangerous as he was before.

"Now…" he boomed. "Now you die…"

E-121 began readying another attack, this time fiercely charging up beforehand to ensure no chance of survival. Tails was too scared and too exhausted to counter attack or even run away. He had used up all the power his young body could muster. There was nothing he could do as E-121 returned fire.

"No!" cursed Knuckles.

"Die!" spat E-121 finally releasing his full power.

Tails screamed, bracing himself for the worst while Marine looked on helplessly from the ground. Moments away from impact, Knuckles threw all caution to the wind and bravely stepped in front of Tails, shielding the boy with his own body. Knuckles howled in pain but stood refused to move, not as long as he had even a single breath left in him.

 _Knuckles has put his own life on the line to protect Tails from E-121's lethal blast. But if Knuckles falls, the Chaos Emeralds will cease to exist! Will the Nocturnian survive?_

 _Find out next Sonic Chaos Z!_

* * *

 **Apologies for the chapter being so short but that's probably due to it being action heavy with less dialogue. On the plus side you get the next one faster. For some reason I found this one to be quite the chore but I don't intend to give up any time soon.**

 **See you next time.**


	12. Farewell Knuckles! Behold Sonic's fury!

**_Ah yeah! It's the one we've all been waiting for. The one that contains that infamous scene. How will it play out this time?_**

* * *

To say the pain was excruciating would be an understatement. Every inch of his body felt as though it was going to melt into a hot mess at any second. He couldn't take much more of this…

The area was filled with the usual soot and smoke that filled the air after an energy based attack is used. E-121 whirred in satisfaction with his handiwork.

But as the air cleared up, to everyone's amazement Knuckles was still standing! His skin was charred black in several places, his clothes were next to tatters and his body was littered with cuts, spewing blood as well as steaming with smoke under the intense heat.

Tails lay on the floor behind him, unscathed but visibly shaken up by his mentor's selfless sacrifice.

"W-why'd you do that?" murmured Tails.

"Just run Tails…" said Knuckles smugly. "Before…"

Knuckles' bravado didn't last. Having depleted his entire reservoir of strength he collapsed to the ground with a thud. Marine observing from a distance was at a loss for words. What was more astounding? The fact that Knuckles' gave up his own wellbeing for the sake of his enemy's son or the fact that if he were to die then the Chaos emeralds would…

"No!" cried Tails, scrambling over by his side. "You can't die like this! Not by saving me! Mr Knuckles!"

"D-dammit boy…" coughed Knuckles. "Run away while there's still time…"

"Forget about it!" argued Tails. "I'm not gonna run away! Not if it means leaving you here like this!"

Tails was now on the verge of tears, so E-121 took the time to bask in his opponents misery.

"Just hold on!" begged Tails. "My father's coming!"

"Aw damn it," complained E-121. "I had intended on saving that one for last but oh well. I guess it's all the same in the end."

Faraway at the altar of the Emeralds, Tikal also felt the same disturbance, as her life now hung by a mere thread. She struggled to breathe, as if the air was being sucked right out of her lungs. With her life force bound to Knuckles, every threat to his life he experienced, she felt as well.

Mr Babylon, held her in his oversized arms as she her breathing became more haggard.

"So this is how my story ends after all…" she lamented. "Sonic couldn't…make it in time to prevent Knuckles' death… But in his last moments, my dark counterpart outshined even me…An encouraging thought…"

Though he could shed no tears, Mr Babylon sobbed softly as Tikal's body began to dissipate.

"Tikal…No…" he cried

Not too far from the fray, Sonic strained himself to run even faster as he felt a disturbance.

"Someone's power is fading rapidly…" cursed Sonic. "Someone's dying!"

Piecing it together, he threw all caution to the wind, speeding off towards the battle zone, no longer caring about initiating any surprise attacks.

"What a sorry excuse I've become…" scoffed Knuckles smugly. "Me, the great Knuckles, laying down his life to protect some whiny little pipsqueak…"

"Mr Knuckles…" cried Tails.

"Tails…" weakly grinned Knuckles. "Besides your father...you're the only other person who showed me kindness...even after all I'd done..."

Knuckle's felt his life flash before his eyes but reminiscing all the times he'd trained with Tails brought him some comfort amongst a collection of memories with nothing but pain and disappointment.

"T-t-truth be told, this last year wasn't so bad…" he smiled. "I-I'm glad I grew to c-consider you as a friend…"

"Mr Knuckles please!" Tails begged him to hold on, as E-121 advanced towards them.

"Thank you…Tails…" whispered Knuckles, as he drew his last breath.

He closed his tears laden eyes and Tails knew he would not open them again now.

"NO! NOOOO!" screamed Tails as loud as he could.

Elsewhere, with Knuckles' dead, Tikal's body finally began to vanish for good.

"Take care old friend," she whispered to Mr Babylon. "I leave the rest to you."

And with that, her physical body ceased to exist, leaving her as nothing more than a pile of clothing on the floor. Mr Babylon, graciously scooped them into his hands and hugged them tightly, mourning over his loss.

"Oh Tikal…TIKAL!" he wailed to the sky.

The death of Knuckles caused something to snap within Tails. Like a fragile flower that had been crushed in his palm from cherishing it too tightly. Tails shrieked at the top of his voice, even causing it to break from such effort. Shadow's scouter came to life in response.

Tails faced E-121 with pure hatred flaring in his eyes. His aura burned brightly with piecing glow.

"Alright!" said E-121 enthusiastically. "Bring it on!"

"WAVE CYCLONE!" announced Tails.

All of a sudden, vast amounts of untapped energy swarmed the fox boy as he pooled it up into a singular sphere. It grew at such an alarming rate, the others couldn't quite believe it to be real.

"Tails...?" muttered Marine in disbelief.

Tails hollered out loud, as the sphere spun in a spiral fashion, growing larger and wilder with every drop of QI energy that it acquired. Shadow checked his scouter to make sense of the situation.

"700…1500…2000…what the…?" he couldn't believe how rapidly the boy's power was increasing.

When the numbers finally settled to precise value, Shadow couldn't quite believe it.

"These Earthlings can hide their true strength!" he realized. "Watch out! The little one's power has risen to 3000!"

"That's more like it boy!" beamed E-121, overlooking Shadow's warning.

Tails howled as he put every last ounce of his strength into his attack. He quickly absorbed the sphere, manifesting it within his body and like a lightning rod, redirected it through his palms. The beam shot out in a twisting circular fashion, dead set on his robotic opponent. E-121 didn't seem frightened at all.

"You fool!" cursed Shadow.

Moments before impact, Shadow stepped in the line of fire and with a powerful strike, he deflected the path of the beam with a backhanded fist. The beam raced left of the duo, past the injured Marine and kept going until it collided with a faraway plateau. After it made impact, there was a fiery flash of light and the plateau was reduced to nothing more than ash and smoke.

"You imbecile!" spat Shadow, his hand steaming from the blow. "Without your armor, a direct attack to your head could've crippled you even further!"

"What? Oh… Sorry Shadow…I guess I wasn't thinking…" droned E-121.

Shadow grunted in disgust. He couldn't care less about whether E-121 lived or not. He was just a mere tool in his eyes. But if Shadow could help it, he would rather not get his hands dirty with grunt work so it was best to keep him alive for as long as he was useful.

Turning his attention back to the fox kid, who was barely able to stand after such a demanding technique, Shadow's scouter told him what he needed to know.

"Well well," he spat. "His power's dropping like a stone now. The brat used it up on one shot."

Tails panted as he looked back at his mentor's body one last time. He had been through so much, way more than any _adult_ much less _a child_ , should ever have to face. Regardless of his age, he had still experienced what anyone would in his situation. Those same feelings of denial, anger, depression and finally acceptance.

"Mr Knuckles…" he whispered. "I'm sorry… I tried to avenge you…"

Collapsing to his knees from exhaustion, there was nothing Tails could do now that E-121 began to re-approach him.

"Tails run!" urged Marine, struggling to get up. "Get out of there he's gonna kill you!"

But Tails had exhausted what little energy he had left. He lacked the strength to even stand, much less run away. Accepting his fate with dignity, he took solace in the fact his father would certainly avenge all of them.

"No Marine…" said Tails, with a weak smile. "I just don't have the strength anymore…"

"That move was impressive, I'll admit," said E-121. "But now it's time to say goodbye."

Tails let himself go limp, as E-121 loomed over him. E-121 put his foot on his head, ready to squash him like a bug. Despite his best effort to stay strong like Knuckles had done. Tails couldn't fight back the tears anymore. He was scared. He was going to die…

"Don't worry about it kiddo!" E-121 mocked with fake sympathy. "'Cause when your dad sees you crushed to a bloody pulp, I'll be sure to tell him how noble you were!"

Marine couldn't bring herself to watch. Tails braced himself for the end. With mighty swing, E-121 brought his foot down. There was a sickening crunch.

But all he had smashed was the rocky terrain beneath him. Tails was nowhere to be found.

Shadow was the first one to notice. E-121 looked behind him to see the blue hedgehog warrior, protectively cradling Tails in his arms. Tails looked up with greater elation than he had ever felt in his life. Sonic had arrived to save him just in the nick of time.

"Father!" beamed Tails, hugging his father tightly.

"He made it…" Marine giggled weakly.

Tails firmly held on to Sonic, too scared to even imagine what would happen if he let go. He had never been so scared in his life. Sonic silently comforted him, all the while staring down his opponents with contempt.

"Nice of you to drop by," grinned Shadow. "Still I'm a little embarrassed for you, I have to admit. I mean, I sincerely hope you didn't come all this way-back from the dead even, believing you stood any chance against us…that would be a shame."

Sonic ignored him and instead walked over towards the burnt and battered body of his arch-rival Knuckles, lying in the dirt. It sickened him. Nobody, not even Knuckles deserved a fate such as this. Yet his last expression was of a faint smile…

"What happened to him?" asked Sonic solemnly.

"He died trying to protect me from them…" sobbed tails.

Turning his head, Sonic visually scanned the area to confirm his suspicions. Just as he though, there were two more bodies lying lifelessly on the ground.

"Vector… Espio…" muttered Sonic.

A pang of guilt sharply struck him in the heart for being unable to save them. If that wasn't bad enough, seeing Vector missing an arm and Espio's skin turn a sickly green colour made him feel as though he was tearing up inside…

"Does seeing these fools dead, bring your blood pressure through the roof?" taunted E-121. "Apparently there was one more that got blown to smithereens."

Sonic realized who he must be talking about and fiercely gritted his teeth in frustration.

"Those bastards…" Sonic cursed to himself, struggling to withhold his rage. "They killed Charmy too… And if Knuckles is dead that means Tikal will be too. Damn it!"

"Hey look on the bright side!" said E-121. "There's no need to grieve. You're all about to be reunited! And here you've gone through all the trouble, of coming back to life."

Sonic was furious, his body twitching with the burning hatred that coursed through his veins like wildfire. Shadow analyzed him with his scouter.

"His power level is increasing exponentially…" muttered Shadow.

Sonic said nothing as he approached E-121 with Tails still in his arms. E-121 was surprised by his nonchalance.

"Oh? Somebody's eager to die!" he laughed. "You really miss them that much? Well that's fine by me!"

Wasting no time E-121 lashed out at Sonic with his sharp fist. But his blow connected with nothing but air. He awkwardly spun around looking for his opponent, who vanished in the blink of an eye.

"And he's fast," noted Shadow.

At last E-121 noticed that Sonic had walked right through him, totally disregarding any and all threats he posed.

"Don't worry Tails," said Sonic. "I'm here now."

Sonic approached the badly broken and bruised Marine, who shed a single tear of joy from the arrival of her dear friend. Sonic gently placed Tails down beside her. Tails didn't want to let go but he was smart enough to realize the danger they were in. Marine tried to get up but her body wouldn't obey her. The pain was too sharp.

"Marine…" began Sonic apologetically.

"Welcome back…" chuckled Marine, trying to inject some humour amidst the tension.

"Sorry it took me so long," he continued with a reassuring smile. "But hey, you two held your own huh?"

Sonic took something shiny out of his pocket.

"Here you go, absorb them," he instructed. "I want both of you to take one."

"Power Rings?" gasped Marine, raising her head. "I-I didn't think Omochao had any left…"

"You're looking at the last two," explained Sonic.

Shadow looked on with curiosity while E-121 was annoyed that Sonic was dismissing them with little interest. Even after how they had decimated his friends. Anyone else probably would've lunged right towards them blinded with fury.

"You keep mine then…" said a crestfallen Marine. "It would just be wasted on me…"

"Don't talk like that!" encouraged Sonic with a smile. "Trust me I won't be needing it."

"Still, I think you should hold on to it…" insisted Marine. "You know, just in case…Besides, even at the top of my game, I'd probably just get in your way…"

"Yeah well I've got the rings, so it's _my_ decision," grinned Sonic. "If you don't take it, I'm gonna throw it away. Come on?"

Sonic placed one ring in her palm and Marine gratefully absorbed every bit of energy it had until it completely disappeared. Marine couldn't help herself, Sonic's selflessness was enough to bring her to tears.

"Thanks Sonic…" she sniffed.

"Okay now you too," Sonic instructed Tails.

Tails nodded as Sonic handed him the ring. Absorbing its energy came easily enough, as the osmosis of power automatically began the moment he thought of it in his head. Within seconds, his vitality returned, his pain was alleviated and he felt like he was back to full health-no, even _stronger_ than before!

Under such pressure, none of them took notice of the fact that Tails' Lunar Crystal regrew itself from the remains of its shiny surface.

Marine chuckled to herself, finally being able to stand up again. Likewise Tails sprang to his feet beside her.

"Marine," said Sonic with a smile. "You've gotten a lot more powerful this last year huh? I can tell from your QI."

"Yeah, I thought so too before we actually started to fight…" replied Marine with her head down. "Then it felt like the best in me was some kind of joke…"

Sonic could tell she had been through a lot. He knew he couldn't even begin to comprehend how things had been form her perspective.

"The others…We've lost them…" said Marine in a matter of fact tone. "It's a miracle any of us even survived…"

Not wanting to make his friends hurt from reminiscing the pain any longer, Sonic decided to change the subject.

"Tails," he smiled. "I barely recognized you at first! Heh, you've been training really hard haven't you?"

"Mm-hmm" nodded Tails proudly. "That's right, I've been training all year with Mr Knuckles. He was teaching me to be strong like you are. But now…"

Tails' expression turned grim.

"He's gone…" continued Tails solemnly. "And that means we can't use the Chaos Emeralds to bring him or anyone else back to life…"

Now it was Sonic's turn to sour his expression. Marine growled with blistering fury.

"I say it's payback time! Right?" said Marine. "There's three of us and two of them! Yeah! And hey, you've been training with legendary Shahra! With all that going for us, we should be able to take down at least _one_ of them, dont'cha think?"

"Yeah," agreed Sonic. "Only, thing though… you two aren't part of the equation. This is _my_ fight and I must do it alone. I want both of you sitting on the sidelines."

The duo couldn't believe what they were hearing.

"B-but t-that's nuts!" exclaimed Marine. "Look, you may have gotten super strong but _these_ freaks, they're unreal! You can't even imagine what they're capable of! You can't take them by yourself…"

"Dad, you gotta listen!" agreed Tails. "She's right!"

Sonic gave him a final reassuring smile before turning his attention back to his enemies. Making proper eye contact with them for the first time, something deadly flared in Sonic's eyes and a strange erratic aura gleamed around his body. He began to advance towards them.

"S-Sonic…" muttered Marine with wonder.

"Where are you going!?" exclaimed Tails, whilst following him. "Dad!"

"-Wait!" Marine blocked him off. "It might not be a good idea to get in his way."

"What's he gonna do?" inquired Tails, watching Sonic continue to advance.

"I've never seen Sonic so angry before…" whispered Marine. "He's like a totally different person! I don't think there _is_ a place for us in this fight Tails…"

Sonic stood face to face with E-121, his expression brimming with tranquil fury.

"Oh no," taunted E-121. "You do _not_ want to make that face with me. Unless that's the expression you'd like to keep when you die!"

"This ends _now_!" snarled Sonic. "And _you're_ gonna pay!"

Entering his fighting stance, Sonic let the fury that he'd been suppressing consume him entirely. A piercingly bright aura began to emerge around his body, emanating incredibly dense waves of QI energy that spread it's effect around the area. It only got worse...

Sonic roared as he felt his own power envelope itself around him like a swarm of angry hornets. At first, stray little pebbles began to float around him like they were caught in some sort of magnetic cyclone. Then, larger bits of debris began joining the mix until eventually, chunks of the rocky earth itself broke free from the ground, shattered into smaller pieces and became assimilated into Sonic's power surge. It didn't stop there…

Shadow and E-121 couldn't help but look on in amazement as even the terrain began to crack open from a series of tremors yet the ground beneath Sonic's feet remained intact. Marine and Tails dashed away to safety behind some fallen rubble as a mini Earthquake had been unleashed. It STILL had yet to stop…

"Dad's power…" marvelled Tails in amazement. "It's awesome!"

Shadow's scouter came to life with a screech, it's numbers rapidly rising by the second.

"8,000..." he muttered. "9,000...No! Th-this…This is impossible!"

Sonic let out a single shout and the mini earthquake grinded to a halt, stopping on a dime at his command. The floating debris caused rocks to rain down from the sky as the area was filled with soot and smoke.

"Shadow…" droned E-121. "Shadow! What's wrong with you!? Tell me what his power level is!"

"IT'S OVER 10,000!" growled Shadow, crushing his scouter in frustration.

"WHAT? 10,000!?" replied E-121. "There's no way that can be right! It can't!"

"You're going _down_ …" stressed Sonic. "And I may not even have to use the Chaos Control against you."

"Huh? Chaos Control?" muttered Shadow.

"You don't scare me!" yelled E-121, rushing in for the kill. "Nobody intimates E-121 Kai!"

E-121 charged head first towards Sonic, hoping to stun him with a head butt. Having learned nothing from his previous attempt, Sonic was out of sight the moment he pushed forwards. This time however, E-121 was struck in the back of the head unit with a swift kick before he could contemplate his mistake.

"What?!" Shadow cursed to himself.

E-121 crashed the ground with a heavy thud. It had taken everything Sonic had to purposely restrain himself with that attack. He wasn't going to simply defeat them in one big sweep. No… he was going to slowly make them _suffer_ the same way his friends had at their hands. Tails and Marine looked on in awe.

"How…" began Marine. "How did he do that just now?

E-121 quickly got back on his feet.

"How'd you get back there!" he demanded. "You...You!"

E-121 began to charge himself up. Sonic nonchalantly turned to face him.

"You know as much as you puffed yourself up, I'm kinda disappointed," he said.

"W-What did you say?!" droned E-121. "Are you trying to say I'm all bark and no bite!?"

"If that _flailing around_ was your idea of an attack then yeah," replied Sonic.

E-121 whirred with mock amusement.

"Oh really?" he replied. "Then maybe you should teach me a thing or two!"

Having fully charged, signified by the puffs of smoke he exhumed from his body, E-121 raced towards Sonic with the intent to kill. He unleashed a barrage of sharp punches towards the blue warrior, who effortlessly dodged each one as if he was one with the wind itself.

E-121 didn't give up and only put more effort into each blow yet the more energy he dispensed, the more off was his aim. From the other's perspective, it was like Sonic was a petal in the breeze being brushed aside with each one of E-121's swings. Nevertheless, E-121 only quickened his pace, hoping to eventually catch Sonic off guard.

"How strange," mused Shadow. "To think that his power could increase so much now when he was more or less an equal to Mighty."

Growing increasingly frustrated with his inability to land even a single hit, E-121 brought both arms forward and expelled a devastating laser blast towards his opponent. His attack sped off into the distance until it hit a faraway plateau.

"Over _**here**_ ," said an all too familiar voice.

E-121 angrily turned behind him to see Sonic standing aloof and unscathed. His friends watched him from afar with amazement.

"Um…Okay that I didn't even see," Marine told Tails. "Did you?"

"Nuh-uh," Tails shook his head. "But wow…"

E-121 had no choice but to strategize but there was little options available to him. His opponent clearly outmatched him in every category whether he cared to admit it or not.

"I refuse to believe this," thought Shadow. "How could anyone gain so much power in such a short time?"

Sonic entered his combat stance and surged towards E-121 in a blink of an eye, mirroring the latter's earlier assault. E-121 tensed with fear being unable to react appropriately. However, Sonic's fist never made contact with him. Instead, E-121 found his opponent perched upon his head like a bird of prey.

Getting even more enraged than he already was, E-121 brought both fists above his head, trying to crush Sonic open like an oversized walnut. They collided with a heavy metal bang. Next thing he knew, Sonic was standing before him face to face.

With no warning, Sonic punched his fist clean through the torso of his vunerable opponent. E-121 couldn't register pain but Sonic's attack seemed to have transcended across every boundary in existence to make him feel hurt. E-121 looked down to see himself speared on Sonic's arm, his fluids leaking out from such a critical hit. Suddenly, E-121 was swiftly withdrawn from his impalement as Sonic used his free palm to push him right off. He collapsed on the ground twitching in disrepair.

"Just so you know…" began Sonic. " **That** was for Charmy."

E-121 forcefully raised his head up, his fury growing stronger at the sight of Sonic's oil covered hand. Forcing his inner-circuitry to repair itself at ludicrous speed, he stood up once more trembling on the spot.

" _Damn you_ …!" cursed E-121

Deploying a trick he'd been saving, E-121 detached his metal "hands" from his arms and let loose the hidden flamethrowers embedded within. Unleashing them at full force, a torrent of intensely hot flames burst forwards, sure to incinerate whatever they hit.

But Sonic was way ahead and by that meaning he had long since dashed up towards the sky. Coming down like a blue meteorite, Sonic darted towards his opponent at lightning fast speed. With his arms behind him, he brought them down at full force like two organic battle axes.

" **THIS** is for Espio!" roared Sonic.

Thanks to his newfound incredible power, Sonic cleanly sliced through the shoulders of E-121, severing both arms off his body and expelling them towards two different directions.

Staggering a few steps back, E-121 screamed with his boomingly metal voice as sparks and various fluids sprayed out of his severed appendages. Sonic looked into the robotic eyes of his enemy.

"Why _, you..."_ cursed E-121. "You'll pay for-"

" _ **THIS**_ one's for Vector!" snarled Sonic, as he uppercutted his enemy towards the sky. In his final moments E-121 began to malfunction. Or at least he thought he did. Nothing made sense anymore. Sonic tensed himself for the deathblow.

"What's wrong with me!? How can Terios be so much more powerful!" he groaned.

" _AND THIS_ …" Sonic wound up his signature attack. "IS FOR KNUCKLES! **CHAOS CONTROL…SUPER SONIC BOOM!** "

Sonic lunged forwards with his palms releasing an incredible bright ray of blue light. There was a brilliant white explosion as it made contact. But what was more amazing was that Sonic himself shimmered with an intense aura, enveloping itself around him as he turned his opponent to dust.

"No! NO! NOT LIKE THIS!" hollered E-121 Kai.

As Omega's legacy, by darkness his life was given. By light, it had been stripped away. No dreams before, nor after. The only thing left for him was the end.

Marine and Tails looked on at Sonic with total awe. They had lost so much standing up to this metal monster and Sonic had swiftly defeated him in mere moments. Just how powerful had he become?

"Wow look at him go!" marveled Marine. "He's invincible! Go Sonic!"

"Yay dad!" cheered on Tails.

"Keep it up!" added Marine.

His minion was gone but Shadow's primary concern was the weird trick Sonic had just pulled.

"What did I just witness?" Shadow cursed to himself. "For just a split second his speed and power skyrocketed…"

Sonic's allies rushed over towards him as he calmed himself. Taking out his anger on that robotic monstrosity could never completely rid him over the guilt for being unable to save his friends...but it had helped.

"Sonic," began Marine. "How did you do that!? Was that one of the new techniques you learned from Shahra while you were off training?"

"Yeah," nodded Sonic. "It's called the _Chaos Control._ By controlling every ounce of energy in my body, I can amplify it for a short burst. If done correctly: power, speed, destructive force and offensive force can all be increased a lot."

"That's awesome!" exclaimed Marine. "As strong you already are, you mean you can make yourself even stronger, just like that!?"

"That's right," replied Sonic.

Shadow patiently observed them from a distance, carefully calculating his next move.

"So the traitor has proven himself to be a worthy opponent?" he thought. "It seems I have no choice but to step in and finish this myself."

 _The true test of our hero's skills has begun. Sonic VS Shadow!_

 _Next Sonic Chaos Z!_

* * *

 **My apologies for taking so long with updates but better late than never.**

 **Well, better go work on the next one. As well as a short prequel for this story too. Heheh.  
**


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